Sprint goes on a cost cutting spree, by shafting their new customers and loyal customers
Breaking news from the internal memos at Sprint. They have decided to completely axe their 30 day risk free guarantee policy and lower their return policy from 30 days to 14 days.
And just when you thought they would stop there, it gets even worse. After seriously crippling their Sprint Premier program they have finally decided to put it to rest. As of 12/31/11 the Sprint Premier program is being discontinued.
For those that are gold members and do not have their upgrade available by 12/31/11 will have until 12/31/12 to use their last upgrade under the program.
This change only leaves sprint with 1 last remaining thing to differentiate itself, which is unlimited data. Then again, with no decent 4G coverage and the recent suspension of sprint's 3g contracts one has to wonder if that is worth anything at all anymore. If anything, with no new deployments of 4G, one has to wonder why pay 2x more for sprint when you can get same thing on boost mobile/virgin mobile owned by sprint and using the same service.
There is hope though, in october sprint plans to unveil their new plan for network roll out...and as it stands financially, sprint better be convincing.
What is your take on this? Do you think this could be a side effect of the iphone 5 coming to sprint?
UPDATE: Sprint has posted an FAQ for premier members: http://premier.sprint.com/premierupdate/faq.php
© 2011, gTen. All rights reserved.
That sounds exactly like the reason they are doing away with all this. They’ve always charged more for their phones but customers would make up for it in the long run if they were like me and only got a new phone every few years. Now, with the reduction in other incentives and actions like the previous $10 added fee, they are getting to be much less attractive as a provider. Hopefully, they will be making other substantial changes with the new roll out. I’ve been a customer for over 12 years with them, started as a NexTel customer, and was gradually moved over about 5 years ago and was happy with their service and price points.
But, it’s a business and they will charge what the market will bare. If they loose a lot of customers with this, they will probably make some concessions or be bought out by another company. How many New customers have they gained recently with the new data plans enacted by other cell providers? Probably makes up for the loses they will have from unhappy loyal customers. In the end, it’s what makes the money that matters.
Is there better technology than 4g? Even though I pay $10 extra, I have been luckly to get 4g coverage.
gTen Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 3:18 pm
@chong67, 4G is not a technology, it is a standard…the technology sprint uses is wimax. Verizon uses LTE (FDD) and T-Mobile uses HSPA+..
now realistically HSPA+ isn’t really 4G..its more of 3.5G..and while Wimax and LTE are capable of reaching 4G standards, at current speeds they are nowhere close to being true 4G..
Now is there something better then 4g? yes..4.5G >.> lol
I find it amusing Sprint is so vocal on the competition thing against the ATT/tmobile merger. They said it will stifle innovation, increase prices, etc, etc. Then in the last few weeks they have been raising fees to their customers, reducing benefits and doing the same damn thing that the big 2 are doing. Pathetic. At least they still have unlimited data, that is for now. Or should I say unlimited half 3g/1x coverage. lol.
gTen Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 9:45 am
@Riley, The US market was always a monopoly.. realistically speaking I am surprised they all aren’t investigated for price fixing…
It is true that ATT and t-mobile merger would make things even more of a monopoly..but right now its still a monopoly…the carriers have access to spectrum, and most others do not. This makes it impossible to compete..what the FCC should do is force carriers to pool spectrum, cut down on building 5 towers from different carriers to cover the exact same spot and make the carriers SHARE..instantly fixes all spectrum and coverage issues.
Then force cell phone providers to offer modular modems so that any phone can be used on any network. THEN will we have real competition…
BlackDynamite Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 1:42 pm
@gTen,
Great post gTen. I still think you’re a Samsung fanboy, lol, but I’d vote for you for president after reading this post. I agree with everything you just said 100%.
gTen Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 3:12 pm
@BlackDynamite, As I said before..I am not a samsung fanboy..as I told you before the reason why samsung devices outspec the competition is because samsung has an unfair advantage. This is also why the Japanese government is now forming an LCD company with 3 other LCD companies including Sony, because in the LCD market Samsung has been abusing its unfair advantage which got them to #1. They use that same advantage to compete in the cell phone market…
- Typed from my Samsung laptop
lol ( Though I am gonna return it >.> )
unkledude Reply:
September 28th, 2011 at 10:05 am
@gTen,
gten…….great idea but then the cell phone companies wouldn’t really be able to differenticiate themselves from one and another. same could be said of all things ex. cars, tv, appliances, department stores …how about gas prices ?….ect. it wouldn’t be “america” then, where big companys calls the shoots and others follow or else they’re put out of business. i agree with the concept tho.
if these changes are iPhone related, how about just adding the disclaimer “excludes iPhone” instead of totally killing off programs like Premier…
I love how the screen shot mentions points to tell customers.. “”growing 4g markets” – when was the last time Sprint added a 4g market, 6months ago? a year? lol
well here’s yet another loop to close your account ETF free…
gTen Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 9:38 am
@boredandtattooed, Premier is an EXTRA benefit not guaranteed by the contract. It won’t get you out of the (now increased ETF). I did not mention it in this article, but ETF as of sept 9th is 350$ instead of 200$…
oh and sprint is now demanding your first born child..jk lol
BlackDynamite Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 1:45 pm
@gTen,
Is our existing ETF $350, or is that only if we upgrade our new ETF will be $350? If they are raising our existing ETF, that should get us out of contract, right? I’m ready to drop Sprint after all of this. Give me an Evo 3D (or that Samsung Galaxy 2 3D) on Verizon with their LTE, and I will be sold.
gTen Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 1:54 pm
@BlackDynamite, The ETF change is on new devices, so no way to get out of contract on that.
saibot Reply:
September 16th, 2011 at 8:21 pm
@boredandtattooed, They haven’t been adding 4G markets, but they have been filling in the holes in the markets they already have. I now have 4G coverage in more areas. It IS growing.
jamice4u Reply:
September 29th, 2011 at 6:35 pm
@boredandtattooed, They add Premier because they was losing customer due to the Iphone. Now that they will be getting the iphone they don’t need it anymore.
It seriously pisses me off how apple is ruining the air with this bullshit stuff.
good idea @gten
As long as they let me stay on my $30 SERO plan I’ll stick with them. If they terminate it, I’m going to Virgin or T-Mobile!
gTen Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 11:50 am
@gullzway, I don’t think they can…what I read and not sure if its true or not..but sero plans give commission to a 3rd party based on contracts. So terminating a SERO account would be a violation of sprints contract with the 3rd party. Of course sero premium is already a sprint thing so they can do w\e they want with the premium accounts. And my guess is, premium was probably a bait for people to switch from their grandfathered sero…
Well I got some inside scoop that told me nothing NEW will occur until Q1 of 2012. For those like myself with coverage problems they will remain as such until atleast December 2011.
Should we blame the iPhoooone for these changes? Well I don’t know but if carrying an iPhooooone disrupts service so bad and annoys customers so much why carry it? Supply and demand.
Regardless of what happens next if Sprint follows the other &^*((* in pricing, limited data plans and continued cheap service I for sure will just go caveman. Yup, no cell phones period. Why pay $230 a month on a cell bill when all we got are complaints. I for sure will survive and longer without the extra radiation and aggrevation these cells are providing. If we truly want to force a change against the monopoly and abuse there is nothing better than a boicot.
i hate to say it but maybe it’s time i switch from sprint to a different carrier they seem to be getting shifty as of late ..
havek Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 5:02 pm
@rrjskj, true but who is to say that the next guy won’t get shifty when they see a mega influx of new customers. Assuming many others choose the same route. You know, something like what Sprint is doing now.
rrjskj Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 5:44 pm
@havek, your there is no telling but u would think sprint would have seriously took this into consideration and not just leave people who they have valued as loyal costumers and premier gold status out to dry like that especially since for me premier gold hasn’t been around that long …
rrjskj Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 5:44 pm
@rrjskj, err meant your right lol ..
radar369 Reply:
September 22nd, 2011 at 5:48 am
@rrjskj,
NO………he means “YOU’RE RIGHT,…..” LMAO!
at least there is some news after two weeks of silence on this news page.
If this removes the annual upgrade, weighing what the other carriers offer is the only sensible option.
havek Reply:
September 15th, 2011 at 4:58 pm
@-Enkidu-, no disrepect but I can’t imagine why Sprint or others would call a renewal of contract an upgrade. A true upgrade would entitle upgrading your phone at a reduced price with no strings attached. Example, getting an EVO 3D for $199.99 or less but without having to renew your contract for another 2 years.
I mean we can change our cell plan whenever we want so adjustments there at the time of “upgrade” are irrelevant.
Having to renew your contract to get a newer phone and calling it an upgrade is a total laugh and a scam. At renewal or “upgrade” you are no different than a new customer, you get no additional benefits or treatment.
Like I said, no disrepect but I think its just another brain wash.
Fuzzilla Reply:
September 18th, 2011 at 10:04 am
@havek,
FWIW, I’m a 7 year Sprint veteran. You may be surprised at the ups & downs I’ve seen. This week I wanted to add a second phone to my existing plan and share minutes per the offer on my account webpage but it takes me to a link to “upgread” to a Family Plan (for twice the cost of what I pay now) and lose my month2month for a 2-yr. Then there’s the $10 a month price hike for adding a smart device (a Treo 800w) next to my Handspring (Treo) 600, also a smart device, for both devices. If I decide to drop the 800w within 30 days I also drop the 2x$10 price hike. My monsterous discounts are the only thing keeping me at Sprint.
Thanks, I feel better now. ;op
-Enkidu- Reply:
September 19th, 2011 at 12:01 pm
@havek,
Apologies for the confusion. I did not mean plan renewal, update or change, I meant device upgrade, which is now 20 months instead of 12.
Once you take advantage of your next scheduled upgrade, all subsequent upgrades will be governed under the 20-month New for You program
If this is the case, I may finally have a reason to make a move for Verizon. I wouldn’t use AT&T to save my life or the life of a love one, though. Both services are dramatically more expensive than Sprint WITH the $10 data fee on top of Simply Everything though. But at least I’d know I’d have better phone selections if I made the switch.
and forgot to mention that in the areas where there is 3G coverage the speeds are like dialup in peak periods. its not as bad here in my hometown like it used to be but the speeds are still below what’s defined as 3G and/or mobile broadband.
I actually figured out what the whole deal with them getting rights to LTE was all about.. now that they have access to lte, they are finishing building the WiMax. My area is in the middle of getting a bunch of new signals..
Something that should be mentioned: http://www.sprint.com/popups/upgrade_changes.html
Learn about changes to our New for You upgrade program
Print this page
On October 2, the following changes to our New for YouSM Upgrade Program will take effect:
New lines of service and existing customers who upgrade on or after October 2, 2011 will receive future upgrades after 20 months
$75 and $25 upgrade discounts will no longer be available for customers signing up for a 1-year agreement or 2-year agreement after 12 months or signing a 1-year agreement after 22 months.
Additional information for existing customers. As of October 2:
If you’ve already qualified for a full upgrade, nothing changes. When you sign up for a new 2-year agreement and take your device offer, future upgrades will be available after 20 months.
If you haven’t qualified for your full upgrade yet, to receive a discount you’ll wait until you qualify for your full upgrade at 22 months.
It’s definitely official:
http://premier.sprint.com/premierupdate/?id12=vanity:premier
As a 13-year Sprint customer, I find this assertion that they’re going to concentrate on “affordable unlimited data plans, advanced, high-tech devices that run on a state-of-the-art network, and an ongoing focus on customer service” rediculous. The data plans aren’t exactly any more affordable than the other carriers, and their network is definitely inferior to VZW and in some places even ATT. Occasionally the devices (Evo, Evo3d) are better than the other carriers’ offerings, but only for a month or so until the new phones come out that sprint never gets.
I was going to jump ship before due to their lack of good Android phones, then the Evo came out. Then they had no dual-core phones on the horizon, so I was going to jump ship – then the Evo 3D was announced. Now, I see no reason to stick with Sprint when my contract is done.
rrjskj Reply:
September 16th, 2011 at 8:07 pm
@MUHAHAHAHAHA,
yeah kinda makes that whole jumping since thing more valid
rrjskj Reply:
September 16th, 2011 at 8:08 pm
@rrjskj, jumping ship****
Forgot to mention that one must reach gold status by 9/30/11 in order to be eligible for the upgrade. Also don’t know where the “no new deployments of 4G” part came from. The 4G area has recently grown in my area and continues to spread in others. Perhaps no new major markets, but filling in the gaps in the markets they already have is nice.
Still better than the other major networks, but don’t know how much longer I’ll stay. Due to their change in administrative fees…again, I should be able to get out of my contract and go month to month.
As a sprint customer for 12 years, I do think I will be jumping ship..
The only difference now between Sprint and the other carriers is unlimited data. I have been with Sprint for over 12 years now. Where I live in Fort Worth I get no 4G and terribly slow 3G. Over the last month I have had a bunch of network busy when dialing out, unusually high dropped calls, and very slow 3G, if I can get it at all. In 9 months my five lines will be up and I am trucking over to Verizon. Was going to do it for the service anyway but this seals it.
FWIW, I don’t know anyone who even reaches 2GB per month data usage, your mileage may vary. I would like to hear from those who do just to meet someone who does. I am a moderate user and might hit 1GB or so. Anyone here hit 2GB or more?
gTen Reply:
September 18th, 2011 at 4:03 pm
@Fuzzilla, I hit 2gb in 1 day…>.> lol
Aleki Reply:
September 19th, 2011 at 12:59 am
@Fuzzilla, closing in on 4gb this month; although I usually average ~2.5GB a month. I hit these numbers from streaming music on a daily basis (to, at and from work + gym)
So, if I understand the Program limitations that are coming, it really mainly effects people who upgrade every 12 months or so anyway? People, like me, who usually don’t get a new phone for 3 more more years really wouldn’t notice much of any difference. I’ve never really been one to go out for the latest and greatest and am happy with what I have for a few years. Other than the initial outlay cost for devices, I’ve really not seen much of a reason to move away from Sprint. They still have a better pricing plan than the other carriers and, eventually, they will have full 4G service. Yes they are slower than the others at getting it out there but is the speed difference really that much slower than most?
Is there something I’m missing?
gTen Reply:
September 18th, 2011 at 4:08 pm
@JohnMcD348, It effects you get your next phone too. Before you had 30 days to return the phone if you don’t like it. Now its 14 days and you may be paying a restocking fee if you do return it. Once past that 14 days you will have to pay a 350$ ETF (upped from 200$ earlier this month) to get out of the contract.
To be fair, most others also have 14 days and increased ETFs..but problem is sprint has recently lost a lot of coverage..it is half of what it used to be. And sprint is 1 by 1 loosing their advantages.
Don’t get me wrong, I want to stay with sprint..but if they take away unlimited data next..I am gone..
eagle2222222222 Reply:
September 19th, 2011 at 1:43 pm
I just got done comparing Sprint’s 1500 unlimited plan and Verizon’s comparable plan, including all the data, insurance, etc. Verizon’s plan came out to be exactly $8 more. Yes, Verizon cap’s the data at 2 gb, but I have never even been close to that number with Sprint. I have five lines on my plan and the biggest reason I stayed with them was the Premier Plan. I refuse to pay the same amount for a much more inferior service that I am getting with Sprint. Come next June I am heading over to Verizon with my 5 lines.
Since I’ve had my EVO i think I’ve gone over 2GB every month. Some months I go way way over 2GB. Even when I had my Diamond I would occasionally go over 2GB. With streaming music, OTA nightly backups and now streaming video (when I’m in a WiMax area) I don’t forsee my data usage going down anytime soon.
kermit22 Reply:
September 21st, 2011 at 12:19 am
@kermit22,
oops that was supposed to be in reply to fuzzilla
well looks like things aren’t getting any better so as of next month for me sprint will be getting the old middle finger salute and i’m switching to prepay
the funny thing is I tried to ask them some info via chatt about the upcomming iphone on sprint.
I simply asked “What version of iPhone will sprint be getting?”
I only asked because ive read in a few places that it would only get 5, some said it would get 5 and 4, others said only 4.. so I wanted to have it cleared up from the source.
The reps answer as this
“Well, unfortunatly I have no information to share with you about any iPhone device on sprint. It might be a posibility sometime soon, but for now I cant tell you anything”
……
Really? Its all over the place! SO many places have been talking about the iphone and its estemated release in oct. And all she has to say is she cant share any information with me?
that was earlier today.. what a bust.
How can you tell how much data you’ve used id you have the unlimited plan?
gullzway Reply:
September 24th, 2011 at 12:27 pm
@jrzboiz,
Log on to your Sprint account, click on “see all usage” next to your device, and scroll down to Data.
I’ve used 2.3 GB this month with a week left.
I received a letter in the mail yesterday informing me, officially, of the discontinuation of the Sprint Premiere program. However, the good news is that it also included a provision that my 12/1/2011 annual upgrade would be honored until 9/30/2012. So, it looks like the good news is that those of us with an annual upgrade coming up will still be able to use it for another year.
My only issue with Sprint is their lousy phone selection. If they don’t pick up a decent Windows Phone in the fall or early spring, I’ll make a switch to Verizon.
Dear SPRINT:
Don’t follow suit with these other companies and begin to charge more for service we should be paying less for. Come on, we have been loyal costumers with you and now, we are begining to feel a little betrayed.
If you do decide to change pricing, I too (along with my 5 cellular lines) will have to look for shelter under another broken company. We PREFER you, (even though your coverage at times is shotty and 4G is hard to keep connected) yet, you see us here, month after month, paying you… Continue to change my contract and I too will have to go caveman… jejeje
We all need to email Dan Hesse to dan@sprint.com to express how dissatisfied we are about all these changes.
I have had terrible service where i live for about 2 weeks and the stupid reps kept telling me that there is 1 tower 1/2 mile away causing issues but everything is ok. Then they tell me that it is probably my phone that is possibly defective so check this, I work at the town next to where I live and I have no issues there at all but when i get close to this area, BAM! no service or roaming immediately. i called 5+ times to report the issues and create trouble tickets but they can’t help me cause i refuse to “troubleshoot my phone first” or “take it to a repair center” and they cannot report it as a trouble site until i “troubleshoot” my phone first. I emailed Dan and I got a quick response the next day from a Supervisor that is addressing this situation.
I HATE IGNORANT CUSTOMER REPS AND TECHNICAL SUPPORT telling me to remove the damn battery and update the PRL to resolve the issue! But there is something wrong with a tower 1/2 mile away but it’s ok. WTF!?!?!?!?!?!
We have suckie slow 3G service, more like 2G, in this entire area and no 4G at all. What’s the point of them making these phones if they cannot upgrade their infrastructure? I am so ready to leave Sprint!
KIOWA69 Reply:
October 23rd, 2011 at 8:48 pm
@sanyo69, You think that’s bad, I have been dealing with Sprint over crappy service in the area I use to live in since February, and I got the same story as you that their was nothing wrong with the network. Finally they told me I had to take my phone to a repair center to get further help, I did that and the repair center told me the network was overloaded and that they were to upgrade the system in the area, come to find out they kept putting my area off due to larger networks having priority. Now I have moved South 400 miles and the network is still crappy and again they are saying that I need to take my phone in to a repair center. I’m so tired of their crap and crappy network that I’m seriously considering switching. If they can’t improve their network and I can’t get what I pay for then I’ll leave.
KIOWA69 Reply:
October 23rd, 2011 at 8:53 pm
@KIOWA69, Guess I should of put that I’m only pulling 16kbps up and down if I’m lucky. And I don’t know exactly what it proves by doing this, but they had me dial ##33284# and go to EVDO Engineering and tell them what it said, which it says for everything, but I did the same thing to my wifes Evo and hers is populated with information, I’m rooted and she’s stock.
We all tried emailing Hesse when they added the 10 dollar 4G fee. We see how that turned out…they said, “Fine, we’ll put the 10 bucks on all smart phones. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it”.
I hate to leave a company after like 12 or 13 years but Verizon’s LTE is disgustingly fast and I don’t hear many complaints about their network.
Boo on Sprint. Ya terds.
So it’s been 15 days and there are no news posted on the front page. whats going on?
When I first read this I thought they were getting rid of the Annual Upgrades, but it turns out they are getting rid of the Sprint Premier program. I didn’t use it anyway. The only thing I care about is being able to buy a phone using the $150 discount. I just read their FAQ and the New for You program will still be in effect. Thank God.