iBurst uncapped debate

[jannievanzyl]

Ok but really, to get 20GB a month on the throttle you really have to downlaod 24/7. At the end of the day your going to pay more on electricity than your subscription fee. Its just not economical.

This is exactly what the guys did, burning through their cap as quickly as possible to get into the throttled state and get the extra gigs. Here's one such user describing the process.

Jannie i understand what you are saying but the truth is that i can do more than 3GB on the 64k if i wanted to , it would just take a bit longer.
This is just encouraging me to race through my cap asap and then just let the pc download 24/7 from the 3rd of the month right through till the end of the month at throttled .

Make no mistake, I don't blame users for coming up with creative ways to use a service. Guys like Dusk saw a gap and used it to their advantage. I love it when human beings are innovative. But clearly it clapped the network badly and this specific 'application' was not iBurst's orginal intention.

The other thing is you cant really call it a uncapped package. Even at 128kbs it would be terribly slow.
If you want to give us a real affordable uncapped VAS, at least make it 384kb/s.

I think that would be very popular and make allot of users happy.

In the pipeline.

Oh and before I forget "top-up rates were drastically cut, from R950/GB to as low as R39/GB."

R950 . . are you kidding me?? lol

Kid you not. That's why we changed it.

 

[dbnnet]

My 2 cents - Most of this drama (and trolling) could have been avoided by proper communication and decent support:

To Jannie - You’ve been running the ship long enough now to get the support helpdesk and backoffice functions fixed. No excuses please, Iburst support is still appalling.

To the Trolls – You’ve made your point, now time to visit a shrink and move on with your life …. That’s if you have one!!!

 

[diegoa]

Aye, I am too tired of all the trolling going on, its quite sad.

My 2 cents - Most of this drama (and trolling) could have been avoided by proper communication and decent support:

To Jannie - You’ve been running the ship long enough now to get the support helpdesk and backoffice functions fixed. No excuses please, Iburst support is still appalling.

To the Trolls – You’ve made your point, now time to visit a shrink and move on with your life …. That’s if you have one!!!

 

[Dusk]

Quote Originally Posted by Dusk
Yep number shuffle thats all it is. Reward the existing clients for staying with you by still providing them with the uncapped throttled 64k atleast while upgrading their caps .
I used to just download what i needed (well as far as i got on my cap) and then just use the throttled 64k for basic needs.
Changing over to the new package i have to micro manage my download sizes with a dashboard that doesnt work 99% of the time otherwise i end up without internet.
I think ill just stay on my current package as it would work out more expensive to go for the new 5GB + 64k uncapped than what i am currently paying.

Current package 5GB + 64k uncapped

Old price ( R 599 )
New price ( R 592 + R199 )

Jannievanzyl
You can certainly stay on your current package if it works better for you.

In your example above you actually get 3GB more data for a few bucks less.

I dont want the extra 3GB.
I bought my hardware for 5GB +64k throttle for R599 , thats what i want.
The way technology works , your prices for the same product is supposed to go down over time ... NOT UP .


Then why lie to me ?

I will CONTINUE to warn people against iburst with proven facts.

They lie , promises broken without even an apology . FACT !
They have a non existent service support system with people being ignored , telephones at their support number not getting answered , emails not getting responses etc FACT!
If you go with them you will end up with hardware that is useless when you leave them . FACT!
Their accounts department is a mess. Over billing , wrong statements etc. FACT!
They became more *expensive in a time where everyone else is getting cheaper. FACT!

*Old
5 GB + 64k throttle = R 599
New
5 GB + 64k throttle = 445 + 199 = R 644

The day that you refund me on my now useless hardware and admit to your lies and apologize is the day you might just earn some respect back .
Until then you will lose more sales by word of mouth than you could possibly imagine.

You should really learn how powerful word-of-mouth can be for bad or in Afrihost`s case , good .

1. Thats still an increase ... I have a fixed budget of R600 for internet . I bought my Iburst Hardware cash knowing that this is the package I want 5GB + 64k throttle (i dont want to get stuck without internet connectivity once im capped aka I dont want to micromanage my bandwidth usage . Especially not with their unreliable usage monitor) was at that stage what I wanted and that it can only become cheaper as time goes by . I spent R3000 on that hardware.
Seacom lands and after a while it becomes generally available to re-sellers of bandwith .
Everyone drops their prices , yet Iburst stays the same .
Increasing demand from users gets Iburst attention for price reductions .
Your CEO announces that Broadband pricing has dropped for all iburst clients
Joy is short lived as soon it is discovered that they took away the one thing that i got iburst for and offers as Value Added Service. Nothing more than a smoke screen for a products that became more expensive through a numbers shuffle.
Soon people are doing the math and some stuff just doesnt make sense... Where is the saving ???
Why am I paying more for exactly the same product 5GB +64kb now costs R145 more.
Iburst gets resistance from users and request to not be migrated to new packages.
Jannie steps in stating that anyone can go back to their previous package if they so choose.
He goes one step further and says that for next 3 month that not only will people get 64k and the increased bandwidth and if they still want to migrate back to old structure , they can.

<insert 3 months later>

Okay iburst , times up . The last 3 months actually wasnt too bad .
Aw well next month its back to 5GB.
Dusk :" Hi iburst , can I migrate now ?"
Jannie :" No , you are pay per month ."
Dusk : "...and ?"
Jannie :" Hmmm , I dont want to talk to you anymore ... <silence>"
<Iburst meeting >:" MWahahaha with contract guys , we will do they same but it will be spread out cause not every contract ends at the same time. That way the complaints are spread out over time so it only looks like individuals are isolated cases and new people will still consider us ."

Now I ask you , where is the respect for your clients ?


2. Thats not the service I bought my hardware for.
5GB although little , was enough for me and the 64k made sure i was always in contact via family , work , friends with basic browsing when needed and sometimes those big linux ISOs and other big downloads.
Now I have to pay more for that same service when every other ISP is getting cheaper ?

 

[the_lobe]

Last edited by bwana; 16-03-2010 at 07:39 AM. Reason: play the ball

Seriously, bwana, what ball? Do you seriously think jannievanzyl can't defend himself? A lot of public figures are called much worse on this forum, why are their name calling not edited out?

“The only losers are month-to-month subscribers who typically used the uncapped 64 Kbps service to consume large amounts of data,” said Van Zyl.

Why are credit-councious people who work carefully with their money (especially in the light of the recent "recession") being punished for users being over eager with their uncapped? Why not send these users notices to "persuade" them to stop downloading so much, if there are only a few users? I'm sure you can see who these abusers are? I'm sure its part of your AUP? Why are these people being punished for the acts of a few? This is like stopping everyone in South Africa from buying toothpaste because some murderer has clean teeth.

Another thing - "legitimate" users are able to pay R249 for the priveledge of being able to pull 100GB a month. This works them out at R2.49/GB. This is alot more than R39/GB charged for additional bandwidth. I think you should lower this price to R2.49GB, as it is perfectly acceptable by charging for this uncapped by implication.

And before you make assumptions - I am not an iBurst subscriber, and I never will be, so I am not a frustrated month-to-month iBurst user complaining about the uncapped I lost. I have my ADSL and it works perfectly fine for me thankyouverymuch.

 

[jdjoubert]

http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthr...ing-revealed&p=3375101&viewfull=1#post3375101
I dont want the extra 3GB.
I bought my hardware for 5GB +64k throttle for R599 , thats what i want.
The way technology works , your prices for the same product is supposed to go go down over time ... NOT UP .


Then why lie to me ?

I will CONTINUE to warn people against iburst with proven facts.

They lie , promises broken without even an apology . FACT !
They have a non existent service support system with people being ignored , telephones at their support number not getting answered , emails not getting responses etc FACT!
If you go with them you will end up with hardware that is useless when you leave them . FACT!
Their accounts department is a mess. Over billing , wrong statements etc. FACT!
They became more *expensive in a time where everyone else is getting cheaper. FACT!

*Old
5 GB + 64k throttle = R 599
New
5 GB + 64k throttle = 445 + 199 = R 644

The day that you refund me on my now useless hardware and admit to your lies and apologize is the day you might just earn some respect back .
Until then you will lose more sales by word of mouth than you could possibly imagine.

You should really learn how powerful word-of-mouth can be for bad or in Afrihost`s case , good .

I am really impressed that Jannie is on this forum trying to at least get things straightened out for iburst. Unfortunately I have to agree with the above statement. I left iburst in 2007 for most of the reasons stated above. Sorry to hear that not much has changed.

 

[Pilgrim]

Grab a calculator and work out how much data a P2P user can upload/download over a 64/384 link in an average month and you'll see it's over 100GB.

Again, this service was intended as a value add for people NOT to get hard capped. The slowdown in downlink was to highlight to users that they're throttled and should top up. Thus the uplink was never throttled.

The torrent guys picked up on this and used this to get stunning 'seeder' ratings by seeding up to 6 times more data than leeching. As you know it's any leecher's dream to get a good rating.

Right, lets see if my math is correct:
64 kilobits per second
-> 64/8 = 8 kilobytes per second
-> 8*60 = 480 kilobytes per minute
-> 480*60 = 28800 kilobytes per hour
-> 28800*24 = 691200 kilobytes per day
-> 691200*30 = 20736000 kilobytes per month
-> 20736000/1024 = 20250 megabytes per month
-> 20250/1024 = 19.775390625 gigabytes per month

Even if both upload and download are both 64k, your monthly total is just under 40GB (in a perfect situation where you get full speed all the time)

Now, can you please explain how people using your 64kbps uncapped service gets 100GB?

Edit, my mistake, I did not see that uploads were never throttled. Whoops

 

[Dusk]

I am really impressed that Jannie is on this forum trying to at least get things straightened out for iburst. Unfortunately I have to agree with the above statement. I left iburst in 2007 for most of the reasons stated above. Sorry to hear that not much has changed.

The only reason he is back on the forums after a month long break is cause the complaints has not died down.
And to try misdirect the issue once again.

 

[PDonut]

This is crazy -
I reminisce about having Iburst 3 or 4 years ago with their uncapped speed exploit but knew it would never really last... glad I moved on.

 

[InTheCube]

I agree with Jannie and iBust in this regard:
- contract holders still get what they paid for (iBurst are legally obliged to do so till the end of their contract), plus MORE!
- those who opted for month-to-month get a month-to-month service. There are benefits (easy cancellation) as well as disadvantages (contract terms could legally change at the end of any month). Those who chose month-to-month - stop whining. You chose your cake already, now damnit eat it and be happy, or shut the hell up.

I think Jannie and iBurst have tried too hard to be accomodating to the bunch of pricks living on myBB that consume large amounts of data and expect to get a free ride. If it was my company, I wouldn't have entertained their crap, and put a BIG FULL STOP to this along time ago.

Now, for the rest of you complaining myBB pricks, if you really don't like the service from iBurst, then please for the love of God shut-up, and move on to another provider. That's what I did - iBurst really sucked for me, so I moved on to ADSL. I didn't keep crying for 4 months about it. Please give this topic a break already. It's sickening to say the least.

Jannnie, while I don't like iBurst itself, or your company's services, I must admit that you have been very accomodating to these pricks. The longer you let this drag on, the more they are going to flame iBurst (more than the normal flaming). Please for the sanity of the rest of the community put this thing to rest now. And also please sort out all the problems with the accounts, billing and support departments. I'm tired of hearing people complain about it. This should have been sorted out a long time ago.

NB: I'm not affilliated with iBurst in any way. I'm just tired of all the crap from iBurst subscribers whining here on myBB. I've had 2 iBurst contracts for close to 4 years - which worked pretty until the year or so. Eventually I decided that I had enough, and cancelled. If you are unhappy do the same and stop whining. We've had enough of your crap already. There are plenty of alternatives available.

 

[Dusk]

Well I am now on 384k uncapped instead of Iburst.
Why choose uncapped 384k vs Iburst .
This following post is the best explaination i have ever read .
Compliments to the poster

Ask yourself this question perhaps...

Would you want to downgrade to an economical and functioning Toyota Tazz from the iBurst edition Porsche with a Hyundai engine that

is constantly needing some tinkering done to it to get you from A to B...

is always having issues with its central locking... and the dealership's mechanics who always say there is no fault, and you need to reset your dashboard clock to open the car... BUT you need to get INTO the car to reset the clock to unlock the doors... and THEY do not see a problem with this scenario...

that the reason grannies on zimmer frames are overtaking you on the freeway is not due to any interference from their mechanics... it is because you need to get the car aligned "just right" in the lane you are driving in... you need to purchase extra mirrors in order to enable you to see this spot that the car needs to be in to enable any acceleration... OR, you can drive in one of their recommended routes, which if followed, will only get you down the drive and back into your garage. The fact that you need to get outside your house and to other destinations means nothing to the dealers.

your petrol consumption in this Porsche cannot be fathomed by looking at the petrol gage on the dashboard, this is actually not really connected to the petrol tank at all, but is merely a "place holder" in the car, so as to not make the dashboard seem bare... taking its wildly fluctuating readings would indicate that you are consuming the most petrol while watching your car idle in the driveway while you listen to the mechanic explain again that you need to reset the clock on the dashboard if you want to have the central locking unlock the vehicle...

you need to accept all sorts of "add-ons" for your car that must now be paid for just so you can idle it in the driveway again... you had tires, now these will cost you extra every month... you will have to pay for something again that was originally part of the vehicle when purchased...

refueling now means that even though you actually made it into the garage to fill-up, you still need to contact someone at the dealership to allow the petrol-attendant to open the petrol cap... this can only be done by someone at the dealership... the little lever next to the chair does nothing really, it was only included so as to make the space between the chair and the door seem less bare... if you are ever lucky enough to get someone at the dealership who can do this, well, it will then cost you more per tank than other motorists are currently paying... this extra cost is also affected by the compulsory "add-ons" you have had to select... you usually end up leaving the car idling at the garage and walking home safe in the knowledge that when it runs out of fuel, the flashing clock on the dashboard will prevent any unauthorized access to your vehicle.

the dealership also has "no recollection" of any reassurances it made to current vehicle owners prior to the introduction of said "add-ons"...

that when you purchased the car new as a "fast, powerful, economical, go anywhere, technological marvel' you were assured of "imminent engine enhancing upgrades"... that was 5 years ago... these are still "imminent"... you are still forced to idle in the driveway with the same under performing pistons you paid for 5 years ago...

you are constantly hounded for residual payments on the vehicle's purchase price... these will continue for years to come, even though you traded it in last year for your current Toyota Tazz...

I could go on... but at the risk of setting off Dusk and being flamed by "the other non-employee of iBust that shall not be named" I shall desist... others may add if the mood takes them.

It is too hot in Cape Town today anyway, to do any real thinking....

 

[Joe Average]

I agree with Jannie and iBust in this regard:
- contract holders still get what they paid for (iBurst are legally obliged to do so till the end of their contract), plus MORE!
- those who opted for month-to-month get a month-to-month service. There are benefits (easy cancellation) as well as disadvantages (contract terms could legally change at the end of any month). Those who chose month-to-month - stop whining. You chose your cake already, now damnit eat it and be happy, or shut the hell up.

I think Jannie and iBurst have tried too hard to be accomodating to the bunch of pricks living on myBB that consume large amounts of data and expect to get a free ride. If it was my company, I wouldn't have entertained their crap, and put a BIG FULL STOP to this along time ago.

Now, for the rest of you complaining myBB pricks, if you really don't like the service from iBurst, then please for the love of God shut-up, and move on to another provider. That's what I did - iBurst really sucked for me, so I moved on to ADSL. I didn't keep crying for 4 months about it. Please give this topic a break already. It's sickening to say the least.

Jannnie, while I don't like iBurst itself, or your company's services, I must admit that you have been very accomodating to these pricks. The longer you let this drag on, the more they are going to flame iBurst (more than the normal flaming). Please for the sanity of the rest of the community put this thing to rest now. And also please sort out all the problems with the accounts, billing and support departments. I'm tired of hearing people complain about it. This should have been sorted out a long time ago.

NB: I'm not affilliated with iBurst in any way. I'm just tired of all the crap from iBurst subscribers whining here on myBB. I've had 2 iBurst contracts for close to 4 years - which worked pretty until the year or so. Eventually I decided that I had enough, and cancelled. If you are unhappy do the same and stop whining. We've had enough of your crap already. There are plenty of alternatives available.

I agree 100% - stop whining and give credit to Jannie for trying to save the iBurst ship from sinking.
I am a self-employed sofware developer with no affiliation to iBurst.

 

[Tommygun]

I guess the market (& possibly huge investment in misleading ads) will decide if iBursts products make the grade and they are still with us as a company in a year or two. I imagine many iBurst users who frequent this BB are 'power users'. The reality is that power users are a small minority and do suck up the bandwidth resources and that impacts on the other users. Better to get rid of them and piss them off...maybe even have them leech the competition to death than to continue servicing them. As most others in the forum have intimated, if you don't like there is at least some choice. It would be quite nice of them to buy CPE stuff back or mayube put old clients in contact with new or have a reduced price buy back.
Another question is will iBurst survive the competition storm and be with us in a year or two?

 

[kilobits]

* sighs * it crawls out for a quick marketing spin...

Just let it go down... really. One person with a bucket cannot save this Titanic!

 

[Key]

Iburst is a joke. Where in your life have you seen such incompetence at so many levels....? I was with Iburst and vow not to go back. After cancelling my contract and wanting to link my Iburst modem to a prepaid account, 14 calls later to release the router on one system which I was held hostage at and incompetence by their unskilled sales team, let alone the technical incompetence and empty promises... I trashed the modem.... nothing more satisfying than seeing that piece of junk shatter against the wall... I paid my school fees with Iburst and will not recommend them to anyone.

 

[Key]

* sighs * it crawls out for a quick marketing spin...

Just let it go down... really. One person with a bucket cannot save this Titanic!

+1

 

[Dusk]

I guess the market (& possibly huge investment in misleading ads) will decide if iBursts products make the grade and they are still with us as a company in a year or two. I imagine many iBurst users who frequent this BB are 'power users'. The reality is that power users are a small minority and do suck up the bandwidth resources and that impacts on the other users. Better to get rid of them and piss them off...maybe even have them leech the competition to death than to continue servicing them. As most others in the forum have intimated, if you don't like there is at least some choice. It would be quite nice of them to buy CPE stuff back or mayube put old clients in contact with new or have a reduced price buy back.
Another question is will iBurst survive the competition storm and be with us in a year or two?

If 1 % of the users on 64k causes network problems... doesnt say much about the network .

 

[LazyLion]

I'm not an iBurst subscriber... but it sounds fair to me. As somebody said... the fact that they are offering ANY kind of uncapped service over wireless is pretty amazing in itself.

 

[rpm]

I also think iBurst has been more than fair in this case. Contract guys get the best of both worlds, and month to month guys get better value for money. We have certainly not seen this from iBurst previously, and the attitude to give contract guys both the uncapped VAS and higher usage limits is refreshing.

One can understand that there will always be a few guys who are not entirely happy (month to month uncapped), but to slate iBurst for this latest move is just not fair.

 

[diegoa]

I tend to agree here as well.