The Globe Broadband Ordeal

Posted: Thursday, April 16, 2009 by Rom in Labels: , , , , ,
7


This is a copy of the letter I sent to the Globe Broadband Executive in hoping to resolve the worsening situation of my internet connection. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that my appeal will be heard.
This letter is in reference to my on-going complaint and request for your office to have a technical team to come to my house and install an external antenna to enhance my wireless broadband connection.
Last March 31, I approached the Globe Business Center office located at Calamba Laguna for the request to transfer my Broadband connection from my old rented house. The new location is less than a kilometer away from the previous one and I have already provided along with my application form a sketch how to locate my place. Also, I have given them (the business center) my Cell Phone number to contact me in case there is a problem.
The guy at the business center (I forgot his name) instructed me as he go on verifying my submitted application form that it will take at least 7 to 10 days before I will have an internet connection and for their technical team to come into my house and install the antenna. Ok so I waited.
The first Follow-up (April 6)
After 7 days, I called up the customer hotline (029198888) to follow up on the installation and the connection. I spoke to an operator, but to my surprise she had no record of my request of transfer of location, and immediately asked me all the details of it including the location of the business center did I happen to transact with, and so I obliged. The operator learned that the Calamba Globe Business Center did not do their job of dispatching my request for transfer as the 7 days had past prior to the follow up I made. It is only during that day that my request for transfer had its first movement after 7 days of being stagnant. The operator assured me that it will take 3 to 5 days to have my connection be active again.
The 2nd follow up (April 7)
I followed up again the next day, knowing the previous experience with them that they sleep on my request. I have plenty of jobs that needs internet uploading and downloading. And having no internet connection for just a matter of days could do a surmountable harm in my economic situation, not to mention the reputation of meeting deadlines as a writer and artist. I spoke to a guy named Fernan. I can’t get a clear cut answer where is the exact date or time somebody will come to my house and install again or if not when will my connection be remotely connected? He just keeps on saying that all I have to do is wait. I have waited and wasted long enough time, and all I need is a clear answer when I will have a connection.

Since I can’t get a clear answer from Fernan (he keeps insisting that I should wait) I requested for somebody, a supervisor whom I can talk to. After a few minutes of waiting I got to talk to Gwen. She’s accommodating all right, and assured me that she will immediately look into my case and request a dispatch for the technical team. At around mid-noon she called back at my cell phone, informing me that they cannot access the ORDER NUMBER of my request for transfer at the Globe Calamba Business Center, there appears to be an error every time they attempted to generate an order number in my account. The order number is what they needed to give to the tech team in order for them to dispatch the working party to fix my connection. 

  Nothing happens, she just promised me to call me again if there will be an order number generated and had sent to the tech team.
After the day ends Gwen called me up again to inform me that she had already passed on the order number to the Tech Team, but apparently there are no answers from the team.
The 3rd Follow-up (April 9)
The next day, I followed it up again, I’m getting weary and tired of the roundabout of this matter, all I want is a decent internet connection and nothing else, but I have been subjected to this uncomfortable situation wherein I have to talk to different people who cannot answer just a simple question of WHEN WILL I HAVE AN INTERNET CONNECTION?
I spoke to a supervisor named Michelle Baguna. Gwen handed her my case in time she is out, in fairness to Michelle she did her duty of following up and calling me whenever there are updates—but still nothing happens. The technical team is nowhere to be found. I learned also that my connection should have been restored April 7, but nothing is ever done.
The 4th follow up (April10)
Michelle Baguna called me on this day; she told me that the Tech Team told her that I can now bring the Modem from my old house to the new house and have it installed myself. I had already brought the modem since the day one to my new apartment, since I feared that it will be lost if I left it in the old house—as a new tenant will occupy it. Also, I already brought the external antenna and the cables ready to be installed if only the technical team would come and fix it.
Okay, so I followed her instruction, I installed the modem and check the internet connection. Good! I have a connection—in a snail’s pace. I can’t even open an email, the attachments (if I ever got to open an email) is as slow as a snail, and the connection drops every 5 minutes or so. I tried to live with that until now (April 16) pending the arrival of the technical team who should install my external antenna. But not until this morning where I found out that the Globe Broadband had a system restoration and there is no internet connection.
The recent follow-up (April 16)
I decided to follow-up again and call the customer hotline (029198888) again. I spoke to Noah and ask what is the status of the tech team dispatch to my house? To my anger and surprise he told me that I should install the antenna myself. Where in the hell did these people being trained? I didn’t know that when the Globe Broadband handed me the modem the first time I had connection it comes with DO-IT-YOURSELF kit, or they come up with broadband installation for dummies. Where in the hell did the operator come up with the idea that the subscriber should be the one to climb the roof and install the external antenna? Did I pay for P1, 200 at the Calamba Business center for the transfer of connection for that? Whose job is it anyway? Is it the subscriber’s discretion to install their own antenna?
What if the subscriber is an old woman? or a just a woman for that matter? Do you expect your entire subscriber possess a long ladder and capable to climb and install an antenna to the roof? Are we covered with Globe Broadband life insurance if anything happens to us in the course of installing the antenna to the roof?
My new apartment is a two storey 20 to 30 feet from the ground and these modern houses are made of concrete and steel and a simple climbing and utilization of household utensils such as pliers and blade to cut the cord is not sufficient and not safe—the climbing alone is not safe for the inexperienced! That’s why I always insist for the tech team to come to my house and fix the antenna, how hard is that to understand?
After a debate with the operator named Noah, he turned me over to his supervisor named JV. Here it goes again, JV said to me that they have an ongoing system restoration repair that is why they cannot dispatch a technical team as I requested. I asked him when did the system restoration repair started?  He replied that it’s just barely a day. My god! I’ve waited for 16 days for the technical team to arrive to my house and have my antenna installed and all he could do for an alibi is that? I have been asking for the team for 16 days and he will reason out that they cannot be dispatched because there is a system restoration happening for just barely a day? What happened to the rest of 15 days I’m waiting? This is so goddamn preposterous. He even insisted that I should install the antenna for myself, knowing that the antenna need not to be faced anywhere, and further instructing me to just install it somewhere above the roof.
This is insane! I will not be surprised if I call again the customer hotline and some imbecile on the other line will instruct me to go get an internet signal for myself.
My role as a subscriber is to PAY whatever it is due to me, pay the amount that I agreed to pay in monthly basis. The role of the Internet Service provider is to PROVIDE me a decent connection, along with that is the support for me to properly enjoy my money’s worth of internet services. I have done my job, I already paid and paying faithfully ever since, the question is, did the Globe Broadband doing their job?
If in any case the subscriber failed to settle his/her obligation of paying the amount due, the Globe Broadband immediately act a corresponding exploit of cutting off the services and to the extent filing necessary charges, not to mention a letter from the law firm. But what if the Globe Broadband in itself failed to perform its duties to the consumer? Is it the same as we can terminate their services? Or filed charges? I think this is just a one way situation knowing the fact that the Globe have locked in the consumers in their “lock-in-period program” on which I think is unfair and unjust.
All I want is an external antenna installation so that I can even open an email, no I’m not even dreaming of watching videos in YouTube or downloading movies for my pleasure. If the location of my new apartment is not good enough for a decent connection, the business center should have informed me 16 days ago and have finally decided to terminate my Globe Broadband account and transfer to a much wider coverage of the other network.
I am still hoping that things will be settled for good, but keeps an open option of terminating my account and find another one who can assist me and provide me a decent connection.

7 comments:

  1. megarush says:

    Globe really sucks....they always make the same alibi "system restoration" kuno..

    POOR SERVICE....

    i shouldn't have transferred from smartbro to globe....

    let this be a lesson to all, DONT subscribe to globe....its definitely not your HARD-EARNED-MONEY's worth

  1. Rom says:

    I am encouraging everyone who has a problem with Globe broadband ( i think everybody has) to write to their CEO, write also to DTI and NTC. also, try to publish your sentiments through blogs and find like minded people who share the same predicaments with you. you will soon find out that the hulabaloo you've created will force them to act and send technicians to your house to fix problems.

    that's the only thing there is to budge this mega-company and hopefully resolve matters that they should have acted on in the first place.

    i know those "lock-in period" that they have imposed to subscribers is a violation to the consumer's rights.

    kulitan lang talaga!

  1. jepoy says:

    @rom - has your problem been solved? kung hindi pa, feel free to email me the details at jepoy (at) gameops (dot) net. Subukan kitang tulungan :)

  1. Rom says:

    @Jepoy - di ko siguro masabing solved na ang problema ko sa Globe, although nagpadala na sila ng head technician at ikinabit ang antenna ang signal naman ang problema. nakakasanayan na din ang ganito. salamat sa concern mo bro iemail kita ha.
    thanks.

  1. You should also file a complain to DTI for this bad service so that they can be fine. Thank you for saying your experience about the service of globe because i'm contemplating on having a internet connection to be in part time freelancing jobs and globe will be out of my list as a subscriber because of what you had experience. Cheers. Best regards for you. BTW we have the same name :D

  1. Anonymous says:

    globe really sucks!!! i called them up but still no improvement on their signal.they will just tell you wait for 24,48,72 hours,they will escalate your complain etc...after summing up that waiting hours..i ended up that my bill for the month was due again.paying for broadband but the connection is dialup speed.among asian countries...philippines is second to the last when it comes to broadband connectivity.the slowest...south korea on top.helllo globe????

  1. Rom says:

    very true...and they got the nerve to advertise that they have the biggest and "nationwidest" coverege! you know there should be a law (or i think there is) that protects consumers in this one-sided business deal of globe. we are paying in full whatever their rates per month may be but we are not getting their full service--that's freakin' unfair.

    I subscribed for 512Kbps broadband and i am only getting an average of 30Kbps! not even a quarter of what i am paying for.

    should we wait until Senator Enrile stumbles upon this matter like he did with the texting?