[Ben]

"With effect from 1 September picture & video messaging will no longer be included in your extras pack. Please visit vodafone.co.uk/picture (http://www.vodafone.co.uk/picture) for more details."

That's the SMS I just received from Vodafone.

My reaction to this message could best be described with smileys.

Initially I was shocked... :eek:

Then extremely angry, immediately firing off an email to CS... :mad:

and now? Well now I'm just confused! :confused:

Why in the name of all that is tupperware would Vodafone do such a ludacris thing? I understand new tariffs are on the horizon, but what about their millions of customers on existing tariffs who have extras packs! Why oh why oh why would Vodafone possibly change it's tariffs at this pivotal moment in time with regard to tariff simplicity and value to make them more complicated and less value for money?

I'm pretty disgusted. If the change goes ahead then I'll be dropping Vodafone like a lead balloon. Here was me thinking I'd never experience the number portability system!

If you have an extras pack with Vodafone, pretty much anyone who has inclusive free SMS on their tariff, I strongly urge you to call or email Vodafone Customer Services and express your dismay.

I'm not a heavy MMS user, but when I do send one it's reasonable to expect the correct value to be deducted from my extras pack as it always has been. Tariffs should be moving forwards, not backwards, so I believe it is important to make a stand.

Oh, and if you're not incentivised enough yet:
"From 1 September 2006 onwards all customers with extras packs will pay the standard Vodafone UK rate for picture messages and video messages
Picture message: 36p
Video message: 60p"

What a bloody ripoff!

[miffed]

hmmm , nice

considering I have a £25 extras pack (£60 ?) for life as part of my compensation for Vodafone's serial ineptness - All of a sudden the "settlement" isn't so great :(

Still , I have learned a lot from this 18 month contract -

Mainly that I would not touch another vodafone contract with someone elses bargepole :mad:

In fact - I'd readily choose another contract with 3 over Voda (if I had to choose one of them )

[Hands0n]

Abosolutely unbelievable! Words fail me :eek: , and thats saying something!!!

I have had a very happy Vodafone relationship to date, everything I wanted and needed has been provided for. I do not have an extras pack so this does not affect me directly, but it certainly puts me off suggesting the Vodafone SIM only deals when I am asked about such things, which is very often really.

Vodafone will certainly be shooting themselves in the foot with this unless the new tariffs are compensatory and available to incumbent users. If not I would anticipate some churn highs to occur. Not an entirely sensible thing to expose themselves to at any time, less so in their current financial climate. To be sure, the opposition will step in where Vodfone step out! T-Mobile will be one to watch out for here, at the moment.

[Ben]

Mine's the £120 value one on the SIM-Only tariff. Excluding MMS takes a lot of the shine off their SIM-Only deals :(

Now I wouldn't go as far as saying I'd switch to Three (though I wont rule anything out as they have a tariff refresh next month) but I am strongly considering other SIM-Only deals from other networks. My ideal switch would be to SIM-Only Flext 25 (£80 value online) + WnW as WnW adds a tonne of value over the Voda data rate of £2.35/MB - extras pack or no extras pack. The problem here is that T-Mobile don't offer Flext without a phone so I'd be hoping for some kind of arrangement. It'd certainly be a test of how Flext-ible T-Mobile really are these days.

My tariff and service with Vodafone really has been a perfect fit for me, unblemished by the problems that marred my 3G experience with Orange (now functioning flawlessly in my 2G handset, as it always did before). However, the change may well mean I'm paying a couple of pounds more for exactly the same thing and, in a world where tariffs are supposed to be coming down, I simply refuse to accept that.

I'd still be peeved at a change that only applies to new customers, but changing the tariff of existing customers so it no longer reflects what they bought in the first place is wholly pathetic.

[whatleydude]

I'm blatantly leaving vodafone at the earliest opportunity.

This is the straw that's broken the camel's back man..

[Ben]

Well, they seem to have succeeded in peeving us all off!

I'm quite looking forward to their response to my email... almost as much as I'm looking forward to T-Mobile's response to my email ;) I'm officially out to tender!

[getti]

3 are going to launch Flext type plans during August as it has been said. If you think about it you could sign up for one of them with a N80 and sell it for say £170 which is profit as you already own a sim free N80. Only problem MIGHT be data but im sure there will be PAYG data by then or you can get a better deal (you have a data card afterall).

Come on ben join the dark side :D

[Ben]

Thank you for contacting Vodafone Customer Service regarding the MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) pack enquiry.

I am sorry to tell you that from 1st September 2006, we will no longer offer the MMS option with the extras pack.

This now means that from 1st September 2006, you will be charged 15p for a long text message, 36p for picture message and 60p for video message.

I am very sorry to hear that you are not happy with this but we will offer MMS specific extras pack in the future to you.


If there is anything else I can help you with, please feel free to contact me.



Grr! So annoying! And nearly 100% of my SMS are long! *scream*

[getti]

This must be a deal breaker with peoples contract if they want to leave.

[Ben]

I doubt it, Vodafone advertise their deals as just having free SMS - their position will be that most people never realised they were getting the other stuff free.

[3GScottishUser]

Hold on.... lets get this into perspective... Vodafone now exclude picture and video messaging from data bundles... OK well that won't affect me to any great extent. It could affect those who use lots of MMS though but I suspect that is a small minority.

Bottom line is they have to generate income and they are prospecting to see what they can get when charges are applied. I don't think they will earn much though.

[Ben]

These aren't data bundles as such, these are the bread-and-butter add-on packs that constitute all those free text messages Vodafone advertise on so many of their contract deals. Many people get them free of charge and so have been able to send a certain number of MMS without paying for years.

Also, shockingly, if the CSR that contacted me is to be believed, long text messages are also now excluded and will cost 15p. Since when was a long text message not a text message? Sure, deduct multiple amounts from the extras pack balance, but don't take them out altogether! Given the rates of 36p per picture and 60p per video it's also clear that even the casual MMS user will receive mounting bills.

I think this change could see a big rise in monthly costs for contract customers who were previously having long text messages, picture messages and video messages included in their bundle. Many probably wont be able to figure out quite why their costs have jumped or why they suddenly have to pay for things that were previously inclusive.

It disgusts me that a company as proficient (in my view) and productive as Vodafone in recent years could make such a selfish and customer-neglecting move. Extras Packs used to be a unique solution to the need for non-voice bundles. Now they're just another hollow and confusing addition to Vodafone's already clumsy tariff structure.

If Vodafone really are due to refresh their tariff lineup then they should have at least waited and made all their changes in one uniform swoop.

[Hands0n]

This really is an astonishing affair. To include long SMS is ludicrous. One does not have to write War and Peace to generate a long SMS given the 160 character limit of a standard SMS. So, going even one character over is going to sting the Customer for 15p - I presume that even the base "non-charge" for the bundled SMS will be negated by going over by that one character!

That said, I have a 500 mins voice + 100 SMS + otherstuff in a Vodafone bundle. There is no mention of any extras pack being bolted on to construct this tariff. Also, there has been no notification to me (yet) of the above. So at the moment I do not believe that this will affect me. But for sure, it will put me off; (a) changing my tariff within contract in case I do get stung and (b) renewing my contract with Vodafone when the 18 months is up (Jun 2007).

Taking up 3GSU's point "It could affect those who use lots of MMS though but I suspect that is a small minority.". Yes, and it will stay that way with Vodafone if they are going to introduce punative tariffs for using MMS. It will be no good Vodafone bemoaning the lack of MMS use among its Customers if it insists on beating us up for using the service in the first place. This is no way to stimulate use of their services.

One has to wonder if Vodafone are trying to rake in money to pay for their recent reductions or offers in other areas.

T-Mobile sound better yet again!

[whatleydude]

Does anyone know if its possible to get a PAC number before your contract is up?

( just in case i decide to take out a new contract sooner rather than later! )

[gorilla]

I'm not sure if you can get a PAC before you enter your last month of the contract unless you are prepard to pay off the contract. I'm sure someone on here will have a definitive answer.

I got the text yesterday and am still in shock. I send about 5 mms a week, not a lot, but that's roughly an extra £7 a month. I also send a few long sms a month, so all in all I would expect to pay an extra £10 a month if I continued normal usage. All of a sudden my O2 tariff is all the more attractive, considering it currently includes video calls.

[maxspank]

You can get a PAC at any point during the contract, the PAC expires after 30 days, if the PAC is used it cancels your contract, if you cancel your contract ealry you get the early termination fee.

I would reccomend everybody calls up vodafone to complain about the extras pack not including MMS from the 1st Sept, I have had a few calls about this today, we pass each one through what we call Voice Of The Customer.

The reasoning Vodafone have for doing this is, is because most people don't know that extras pack includes MMS usage. This is true alot of customers don't know this, so why don't vodafone put more effort into advertising the fact a little more rather than seperating the packs.

I can confirm hihg MMS users will receive 50% off the price of MMS from the 1st Sept until MMS packs are launched.

[Nosskibird]

Spoke to a silly bitch at Vodafone about my dismay about the MMS exclusion. She recommended waiting till in range of my friends then bluetoothing my photos to them instead! :rolleyes: Thankfully i stayed cool :cool:

[Ben]

Thankfully i stayed cool :cool:
Then you did much better than I would have done ;)

Looks like Vodafone wont be talked out of this one.

[Nosskibird]

Good Evening Miss G,

I'm sorry to hear that you feel let down by vodafone by the withdrawal of MMS from our extras pack and I'd like to explain.

The current extras packs have been available for a number of years but have often been promoted as text packs feedback from a survey of our customers has shown that many are unaware that they can use their extras packs to send picture and video messages.

Our plan is to introduce separate pictures and video message packs in the future.

Vodafone terms and conditions state the following with regards to changing of Tariffs.

7) Variation of Charges and Terms

a) We reserve the right to increase/decrease our charges from time to time and/or introduce new charges from time to time. If we increase/decrease our charges, we will give you at least 14 days' prior notice.

b) We reserve the right to make changes to these terms from time to time and to introduce new terms from time to time if there are changes to the law, or amendments to Vodafone's/02 terms and conditions (as applicable) due to changes to the licence under which Vodafone/02 (as applicable) operates its telecommunications network. We will notify you of any changes to these terms or new terms introduced.

In the meantime customers who send picture and video messages will now be able use their Extras pack to send more text messages.

You'll be able to lower your text pack to a different one (table below) or remove it completely but the charges will remain the same.

Available on all price plans

Value pack
RRP
50 texts
£3.00

100 texts
£6.00
250 texts

£14.00
500 texts
£25.00

1000 texts
£40.00

The use of data included in the extras pack is still included in the packs and is unchanged at present, if any changes are to occur with this service, we'll contact you with this information.

If you wish to talk to me about this, please call me on 08000 680125, we're open daily between 9:00am - 11:30pm. This number's free from a landline.

All the best,

Emma Whitehurst



Vodafone Customer Services
We hope you have found our Email Customer Service helpful and convenient. To contact us please click 'Contact Us'.

[solo12002]

In other words F the user, we can change what we like when we like no matter what you had signed up for.

Sorry but i think those who signed up for something should have the right to retain it, but should also be given the right to move to the new plan, not the way vodafone wants it, we change it and move you to it!

[Ben]

I agree completely solo, and thanks for sharing that response Nosskibird. I hate Vodafone for what they're doing, I think it's unfair and incredibly pointless. If anything they should be bundling video calls into Extras packs and bringing their prices down, not leaving the price the same and reducing the amount of actual value.

[@NickyColman]

Im quite perplexed by Vodafones move. It was only the other day they were declaring that 3G was a failure, or something along those lines. Surely the catalyst that will drive up usage is fair pricing. Seperating MMS/Videos from this bundle is going to confuse customers even more, meaning they will not be willing to send those revenue earning MMS'/Videos.

Anyone would think the Big Red is trying to drive away its customer base! If im not mistaken, a text on Vodafone is still 12p compared to -T-Mobile's and O2's flat rate of 10p. Whilst not a lot, it makes an easy descision for the consumer.

I think O2 and -T-Mobile have it right in regards to MMS. On O2 any MMS that is sent equates to 3 text messages or 25p (depending if you have free texts and minutes.) -T-Mobile are bang on with Flext and MMS; one MMS costs 25p and it comes straight from your Flext Allowance. Simple.

Id like to hear how Vodafone justify 36p for a picture message and 60p for a video.

As for a "long text". . . . im just speechless.



To 3GSU,

Which ever way you look at it, Vodafone are raising prices and making things more confusing for the customer in the long run. There is no justification for that on any network. It wouldnt be accepted at Three and nor should it be at Vodafone.

[bmjholtam]

I think it is safe to say that we all feel pretty shafted by Vodafone with the additional charges we'll now have to pay when sending pix, videos etc.

So let start to do something about it!

I have emailed "Watchdog" from the BBC website & would urge everyone to do the same. The more emails they receive, the more likey they are to look into it.

Also, message your friends ask them to do the same. When ever possible, drop it into conversation, bring it up in chatrooms.....whatever it takes to get everyone involved.

If anyone else has started any kind of campaign, let us all know so we can join in & step up the pressure. This isn't what I signed up for & I assume you guys are the same.

BMJHoltam

[Ben]

Hello, welcome to Talk3G!

I'm glad you also feel strongly about this issue. I'm certainly being as vocal about it as I can.

[Hands0n]

This is certainly a kill-off-new-business move by Vodafone! I'm on a contract with them until Jun 2007 - and at that time I would have been looking for a better deal and new handset from Vodafone. But if this means unbundling [and charging] of stuff that I already have bundled then Vodafone will lose me as a customer, once again!

Perhaps "Churn" is the new buzzword for the operators - the more the better! Lets hope that O2 and T-Mobile do not become similarly afflicted!

[Ben]

While I'd absolutely love to leave due to their uninspired tariffs and collapsing value offering one can't escape the fact that their network is top notch and their operator portal is, IMHO, the best in the business. I could scream :p

[3g-g]

I was talking to a friend who works for Vodafone the other day, and she was telling me similar stories as to what's happening with Orange currently. It's every penny counts, justify your life, savings made here, outsource over there. T-Mobile make the money for Deutsch Telecom and O2 similarly for Telefonica... It's only a matter of time IMO before they're all doing the same.

Remember when 18 month contracts came out, who did that first, Orange? And we all slated them, and within a couple of months everyone was doing the same and it's just the norm now.

The operators are saturated here in the UK now, it's all about making the most money from wht you've got, and if that's charging you now for MMS, or making delivery reports 1p that's what they'll do I'm afraid!

[Ben]

So much for competition eh?

I was in a Vodafone store the other day and heard the sales rep tell a customer that upgrades are now only available on an 18 month renewal. The customer accepted this without batting an eyelid, perhaps not realising that 6 months of value was just wiped from what they'd enjoyed previously wrt free handsets.

[maxspank]

^ That's shocking, the things some peple will say to the customer just to get their commission, you can still upgrade on a 12 month contract.

[johninnit]

Grr... it's the kind of thing that, whilst only small (it'll cost me only about £40 a year), really rankles, and leaves me wanting to write whingey, indignant letters or something. I will deffo take up the suggestion here of emailing Watchdog.

I was bored last night so spent a couple of hours setting up my own protest site http://www.theprinciple.co.uk - Maybe everyone else doing something like this would make them notice - a few hundred bad adverts on the web must be worth something to their marketing dept.

Cheers, John

[Hands0n]

Excellent website, what a chuckle, thats gotta get under the skin at the big red V. I wonder how many of those annual £40 it will take to save Sarin his retirement bonus and pension pot?

What about a link back to Talk3G then huh, huh, huh? Just in case your site gets famous or anything like that :D

[johninnit]

Heh Heh - still playing with it - link coming shortly! ;)

But seriously, they must be skating on much thinner ice than a lot of other companies by doing this. If you've got a 3G phone, you're likely to be in the 10% of the population who can quickly throw together a MySpace profile, blog post or webpage about it, or just get stuck into a debate here, which other buyers wanting information about a new purchase are going to read. I'll wager Voda's customers are a more dangerous bunch to piss off than say Whiskas' or Werthers Originals' punters.

[Ben]

johninnit - Love the site, great idea :) As September rapidly approaches it's probably a good time to pull out all the stops!

[3g-g]

Classic, half arsed complaining should be the new complaining! I tell ya johninnit, don't get me started on plumbers, my father in law is one and I can't even get him round to my house!! Grrrr!

[johninnit]

Heh! I'm luvved up with plumbers at the moment - after a nightmare one a few months back, I've got a very efficient, flexible and friendly bloke in at the moment - (lucky I think I can trust him, as he's taken half the flat to pieces at the moment...)

[Ben]

Currently having issues with plumbers also... but we digress :D

[solo12002]

" after a nightmare one a few months back, I've got a very efficient, flexible and friendly bloke in at the moment"

Lol

Is this the new gaydar forum ? lol:D

[johninnit]

oo-er! let me rephrase that...