This is an open letter to Vodacom:
I decided to write this letter because I realised that many other people feel the same way about Vodacom’s bad service as I do. I’m starting this petition against Vodacom and hopefully, by getting as many people as possible to sign it, we can get a response!
Within the last 4 months I cannot remember a single call that I have made from my mobile phone that hasn’t been either dropped or interrupted. The line either goes completely dead or goes dead for a while then seems to come alive again and this keeps re-occurring. Besides for the fact that it costs me to call back the person, often more than once, the aggravation it causes is the worst part of it. In the case of an emergency please don’t rely on Vodacom!
The SMS delivery standard is shocking. There has been lots of talk in the media about these problems. Of course the networks deny any and all responsibility. ICASA (Independent Communications Authority of South Africa ) subsequently threatened to fine them each R500 000 if their service didn’t improve. I am happy that they were threatened for poor service, but R500 000 certainly won’t scare them. We need penalties that are severe enough so that they are forced to improve their service. I recently sent out an MMS to a friend. The message arrived roughly 20 hours later and from a different number. I don’t know how that can be allowed to happen.
I know the high price of telecommunications in the country is largely due to network interconnect fees. For those of you who don’t know, interconnect fees are the fees that networks charge each other when there is communication between two different networks e.g. Vodacom and MTN. This is where we need ICASA to step in and do something about it. Once a provider has a monopoly there is almost no stopping them, they will simply do as they please and charge what they want.
*Since writing the first draft of this letter ICASA has done exactly that and stepped in to try reduce the interconnect fees. I do fear that it will be a similar situation to the discussion surrounding Telkom’s high prices for broadband – they will lots of talk but very little action.*
Another problem I have is the signal. I have more than 10 close friends that don’t have signal at their houses. There is nothing more frustrating than not being able to contact somebody or know whether they have gotten a SMS due to the fact that they have no signal. I have also noticed that I occasionally lose signal completely for a few moments. A few years ago I didn’t seem to have any problem with signal in South Africa. It seems to me that the networks are now overloaded and they are not upgrading the infrastructure to handle all the new customers. They would rather provide poor service to reduce expenses – something that works in the short-term but will come back to haunt you later on. Quite strangely places that once had good signal are now ‘dead-spots’.
Here is an incident to prove my point about the lack of customer relations. I recently tried to upgrade my cell phone on an expired contract. The rates they offered me on phones were ridiculous. The contract is under a company account with multiple contracts which has been with Vodacom for over 10 years. This simply means nothing to Vodacom. Vodacom sell your account to a third party who manages the account on their behalf. This company assigns you a ‘manager’ who is not concerned with any kind of customer relations or service. It came down to the actuality that I could have walked into a Vodashop, being a new customer and gotten a better deal on a phone/contract than being a loyal customer for over 10 years.
While I was speaking to my account manager I asked him a very simple question:
“What is the benefit of me upgrading my contract through you instead of walking into a shop and doing it there? The fact that we have had many contracts for over 10 years doesn’t seem to make any difference.”
The account manager though about this for a few moments and then admitted that he could not give me an answer. He couldn’t explain why I could get a better price as a new customer or give me any benefits of upgrading through their service. Understandably it isn’t his fault and he wasn’t responsible for the absurdity of the company policy but it proved my point.
*I have just finished reading an article in the Sunday Time regarding Vodacom’s fees. The article is written by somebody in Vodacom – I think it may have been the CEO, conveniently the author’s name is left out. I wonder how much Vodacom ‘donated’ to the Sunday Times to let them write their own article. The ‘article’ should have been marked an advertisement. It is not written by a third party with un-biased view. Each point in the article is more ridiculous than the previous one. They claim they deliver top quality services at good prices, and on top of that they have done great things for the community with donations etc. Please spare us the self-righteous nonsense. I have no problem with capitalism but don’t make out that the company is looking out for the entire community’s best interests. *
I know these aren’t the only issues surrounding Vodacom; however I am leaving space for comments. Anybody who agrees with this can leave a comment below or simply sign their name. If you have an incident you would like to share please do so. Also please pass on the link to this story so we can get as many people signing to make Vodacom respond!
We will await their response, but I know that nobody is holding their breath.
