Bakit, prepaid subscribers lang ba ang may karapatang magalit?
My heart bleeds for Globe prepaid subscribers who are forced to undergo the indignities of rate hikes that ideally will result in a lot less text spam. No, really, I do understand why they would be upset, because money nowadays is tight, and every centavo saved is vital to our survival. I understand.
Prepaid subscribers – who probably make up the bulk of mobile phone users in the Philippines - are getting a ton of value with these promotions. Unlimited text, unlimited text and call… One’s mobile lifestyle can literally survive on P620 a month.
Meanwhile, I have been a postpaid Smart subscriber for more than four years. My plan has hovered around P1300, yet I have found spending easily more than P1500 monthly, easily and regularly going over my maximum number of SMS and phone allotment. To make matters worse, I am locked in to this plan for at least another year and a half, thanks to the two-year plan that gave me a free phone (which I apparently could’ve bought for P5,000.00).
I am therefore led to ask, ‘Why stick with a postpaid plan?”
This entire Globe furor has made me realize that I am being duped as a postpaid subscriber, forced to pay extra when I don’t meet standard allotments, when prepaid subscribers enjoy ‘sky’s the limit’ privileges.
Do we not have a right to be pampered too? Just because we are by far in the minority, does this mean that we should not be given any perfunctory ‘Thank you’s’ with promotions, perks, or points to make us feel there’s a reason to stay postpaid?
We, the postpaid subscribers, are still part of the foundation and the sustenance of the telecoms. Prepaid subscribers can opt to boycott or transfer to another network; postpaid subscribers are legally bound to the telecoms. This is not to mention the hassle and inconvenience of regular bill-paying and account challenging in cases where dubious calls show up on our bills.
Would it hurt you, Globe, Smart, and Sun, to also think about us, the postpaid subscribers? At this point in time, with options for unlimited service available on prepaid service, there is virtually no value in staying postpaid. Mark my words, when my contract runs out, unless the telecoms comes up with some kind of loyalty program that will make me feel as special as the prepaid subscribers, I will happily join the ranks of the latter.
Prepaid subscribers think they have it tough. Try going postpaid, kiddies, and see how well-treated you guys really are.
You sure said it, Ganns. I’ve been a postpaid subscriber of Smart since July 2005 and it frustrates me that they don’t have those unlimited text promos on their postpaid plans. I know Globe lets their postpaid subscribers enjoy unlimited too, as long as their free SMS are all finished up. While some of my friends on Smart who are on unlimited would text me all day, I had to mind my replying because I have to remember my bills.
However…I still renewed my plan in Smart. ^^; The only thing I like in postpaid is that I’m not hassled by running out of credits and reloading.
On another topic…the Globe thing irked me.
I now find no use for my Globe sim…except maybe receive SMS. Hmmm.
i hate the whole RELOAD process for prepaid sims. ’nuff said
but youre right. but i still hate reloading. ale, pa-reload po, 50 pesos
ouch
I’ve been on prepaid mode since the late 90s. It suits me. I get to control my budget and whenever dorks and assholes I hate call me and ask me why I haven’t responded or anything, I could always use the excuse “Sorry, I got no load.”
Besides, i hate receiving MORE bills, ergo no credit cards and post paid subscriptions for me.
But then again that is just me and it suits my common sense….
I’ve been a postpaid subscriber for almost two years now but this thought never occured to me. Hmmm… Maybe I should start thinking if it’s still worth it to renewing my subscription. Hmmm…
globe post paid ako for the last five years, and i really find it better than pre-paid. i think globe has more flexible schemes than smart plans, and their lock is only for two years rather than three. plus like what tina said, we can use unlimitxt once the free texts run out. and then there is the ten cents per second for globe to globe calls.
i think it’s not about the post-paid/pre-paid thing, rather it’s a smart thing. my friends who use smart complain that their load suddenly gets all used up when they haven’t been texting. they often experience message sending failed for a text, when in fact the receiver gets it the number of times it fails. this also happens to globe occasionally, pero i hear it more often from smart users.
better study globe plans, and smart and globe (talk n text and touch mobile prepaid schemes with your consumption. it’ll help determine what best suits you. ;p
My father has been a Globe postpaid subscriber for almost a decade now, and he’s been rewarded (loyalty program) just last year with a phone worth PhP10,000 (if I’m not mistaken) - tapos dagdagan na lang niya if ever may magustuhan siyang mas mahal. Mas maganda ang services ng Globe kesa sa Smart, I think. Globe postpaid subscribers are allowed to register for unlimited texting as long as their free texts have been used up. I started out with Smart and Talk n’ Text kasi dati akala ko pang-mayaman lang ang Globe, pero ngayon Globe mas gusto ko.
Pero Sun pa rin! Basta may signal!
Tina: I understand your reasons for wanting to stay postpaid. Personally, reloading - which, like Jeff said, can be a hassle sometimes - isn’t too much of a problem because we’re surrounded by reloaders. Now that e-load is possible, I literally have officemates, neighbors, and even family members who are ready and able to send me load in minutes.
On my postpaid plan, I still run out of credits - and I have to go to a Smart wireless center to pay the bill. Do you know how many Smart wireless centers there are in the Makati Business District? ONE. Along Ayala Avenue. A 20-minute walk away from my office.
However, I do like perks. If Smart comes up with some kind of loyalty program, maybe I may just stay. (Sure, I’m just one guy - but I’m still a subscriber. I’d like to think my voice still has some value.)
nastypen: In a way, I envy you. With each day that passes and I receive more of these ridiculous forwarded texts that friends expect me to answer to, I really wonder about the viability of my postpaid plan.
Anj and Shari: I’m glad you’re happy with your Globe plans. It’s just that, for me, the value of staying a postpaid subscriber seems to be rapidly diminishing in light of all the value-laden treats the telecoms are giving the prepaid people).
I think, regardless of whether I’m Globe or Smart, I would like to see some kind of tangible value-laden benefit or perk extended to postpaid subscribers, because the value of being postpaid, at least as far as I’m concerned, seems inferior now to the value of being prepaid.
In a commercial world where, say, credit card companies are jostling amongst each other for the right to my account, and restaurants are all trying to offer me loyalty cards and discount coupons, for my telecom provider to not offer me the same kind of value seems, well, a little insensitive, especially considering they’re rolling out the red carpet in little niceties for the prepaid folks who probably spend less per month than I do.
I don’t have any specifics in mind. All I know is I’m not happy being tied to a plan for two years that I can see is no longer responsive to my needs, because better, cheaper alternatives are available, and offered by my provider, to people other than myself.
Oh, and if Smart does have a loyalty program, I’m certainly not hearing about it. It took them a year after the end of my initial two-year contract to send me a letter telling me I could avail of a new phone once my contract expires. A whole year when I could’ve had a new phone!
They say ignorance is bliss. I think it’s one thing to be ignorant by nature (something I am completely guilty of); it’s another thing to be kept in the dark.
I had a Smart postpaid account years ago, all because of a free phone, and my experience with said telecom company was TRAUMATIC. Their billing system is confusing, you don’t really use your line much yet still end up exceeding your alloted monthly credit usage come the cut-off date, and it is extremely difficult (for me at least) to contact their customer service hotline.
Needless to say, it’s been eight years since I first subscribed to Globe … and I’ve no regrets. I am one happy, satisfied Globe user. Walang hassle kahit sa billing nila (and no, that’s not because I live within their head office’s perimeters, hehehe).
Keep in mind the following whenever you opt for telecom services:
1. Look closely at the offered plans. Know how much free call minutes and SMS each plan has so that you can work around that.
2. Read the fine print on their contracts.
3. Choose the plan that best suits your lifestyle and financial capabilities.
4. If you can afford it, go postpaid.
5. Use your plan wisely: call only when really necessary, text when extremely necessary.
6. Do not go for a particular plan just because it offers a phone model you like for free. Sometimes it is still more practical to purchase your handset elsewhere.
Magbalik-loob ka na kasi sa Globe … or maybe you and Cathy can move to Sun para mas tipid kayo.
it just goes to show who whines in this country.
masa pa rin ang kailangang alagaan ng supreme beings para manatili sila sa tuktok. for those of us using post paid plans, they are just milking us for further profit.
Arybba: Thanks for the advice, luv, but once my plan expires, I think I’ll go prepaid na.
AJ: Moooo, pare.
[...] I could call without feeling that guilty, but now I realize how much I’m being cheated. Ganns posted something related to this a few months back, and I could see how much Smart postpaid subscribers3 are not [...]
IMO, Sun subscribers are the most “rewarded” my father is on a 350/month plan with unlimited sun-sun cal and text and I think some number of text to other networks..