Fed up with complicated contracts and what feels like unexpected increases to your monthly internet, TV and home phone bills? Spending hours on the phone with call centres? Wondering if those out-of-town door-to-door salespeople are giving you the straight goods? You’re not alone.
The telecom sector can be challenging and confusing. In fact, this recently published article highlights major concerns around promises made and not kept:
Hundreds of Rogers, Bell and Telus customers angry prices can increase during contract | CBC News
The article calls for the CRTC to provide greater Telco regulation. This would be an important step forward, but, along with this, maybe what you need is the kind of protection you get from a local provider that you trust.
Lakeland Networks is your local provider of “100% Fibre All the Way” to your home or business, providing fast and unlimited internet, TV, and phone across Muskoka and Parry Sound. To help clear things up, we’ve started a new Tech Talk series to answer common telecom questions you’ve been asking about. To kick it off, here are a few of our most frequently asked questions:
Do I have to put up with aggressive door to door Telecom sales people?
Not at all — you have rights.
Many towns have bylaws or statutes in place to protect residents from aggressive or misleading sales tactics. In fact, some municipalities, like Bracebridge, go further by prohibiting door-to-door sales by reps who aren’t directly employed by the provider, while others require them to be licensed. These rules are in place to protect you and your community. If you encounter sales tactics that violate local rules, you can report them to your town’s by-law enforcement office. You’re not powerless. Take action, exercise your rights.
Who owns and operates the internet lines across Muskoka?
Well, it’s a mix!
Some of the major telecom companies like Bell and Cogeco have built networks using both fibre and copper. These networks are supported & maintained by teams across Ontario and beyond. Many smaller providers don’t own their own lines. Instead, they lease access from these larger networks, which means any service issues often depend on those original providers to resolve. Then there are local networks, like the one built by us, Lakeland Networks, which is entirely fibre and independently operated. Because we own and manage our own infrastructure, we can resolve issues directly and quickly with our local staff. So, while the internet might seem like one big system, who owns the lines and how they’re managed can make a difference.
I had someone at my door that said they were guaranteeing prices for 24 months. Is that true?
For the big corporate providers, it’s almost never the base price that is being guaranteed. In fact, they have a track record of increasing that every 6 months. It’s likely the discount they’re guaranteeing. In that case, keep in mind that as soon as that base price increases, your discount has effectively just shrunk. For example, after 12 months, a $20 discount might only equate to a net $10 savings due to those base price increases.
Do all door-to-door salespeople work for the company they are representing?
Companies that do not have local headquarters bring in outsourced third-party sales reps whose sole focus is to get as much business as they can in a short period of time, and then that’s the last you’ll see of them. They may not reflect our local values and will not be the same representative that walks you through the onboarding process and ensures all is well after you’ve become a customer. Instead, you’re handed over to a call centre.
I’m being told that my internet would be provided by fibre technology. Is that true in all cases?
Well, no, it’s not. Just because a company has upgraded their infrastructure, it could mean it’s only fibre down the road but might be copper to the house, years old or degraded. That would be the equivalent of going from a fire hose to a garden hose, so internet quality could be compromised. Be sure to clarify if the line to your house is fibre.
Why aren’t I getting the speeds I purchased?
Speeds in the house could be impacted by a number of things: network congestion, i.e. too many people sharing it, the type and quality of cable to your house, and from there, so many other factors that can affect Wi-Fi speed to your devices. You need to consider router quality and placement, Wi-Fi access points, and much more. Crafting a whole home internet solution is ideal to get the most out of a high-quality internet service.
Questions?
Give Lakeland Networks a call for all the answers. No pressure, just honest help from your local telecom experts. Call 705-646-1846, or Contact Us to send us an email with your questions.