Unsolicited Parcels from Spark - time wasters

Forums › Spark New Zealand (including Skinny and BigPipe) › Unsolicited Parcels from Spark - time wasters - get them redundant

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mattwnz

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#2729126 15-Jun-2021 14:26

I can see a Fair Go story coming up...

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#2729131 15-Jun-2021 14:30

I understand that Spark does have the means of detecting copper voice / copper PSTN based medical alarms.
They should ideally be putting those customers into a high care journey rather than mass market.

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nztim

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#2729245 15-Jun-2021 17:03

mattwnz:

I can see a Fair Go story coming up...

There will be no fair go story, whole Chorus is regulated, RSPs can pick and choose what services they do or don't provide on Chorus infrastructure - if you don't like the offering by one RSP simply move

Any views expressed on these forums are my own and don't necessarily reflect those of my employer.

halper86

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#2729246 15-Jun-2021 17:05

cokemaster: I understand that Spark does have the means of detecting copper voice / copper PSTN based medical alarms.
They should ideally be putting those customers into a high care journey rather than mass market.

I would hope so. For the elderly, some may be lonely and some may have serious medical conditions and these people should have priority support over everybody else. The elderly are the longest users of the PSTN, with my great grandmother using a telephone for the past half decade (as well as being a “number please’ lady). It must be pretty difficult to learn something new that you have used daily for 50 years.

mattwnz:
I can see a Fair Go story coming up...

Possibly, but I just don’t want the elderly being disadvantaged as they are not as technologically minded as us. I hope it doesn’t get to the stage where headlines go “Elderly woman left without telephone and medical alarm for a week”. Then the elderly would be getting even more frightened by modern technology let alone the loss of customers.

halper86

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#2729247 15-Jun-2021 17:09

nztim:
mattwnz:

I can see a Fair Go story coming up...

There will be no fair go story, whole Chorus is regulated, RSPs can pick and choose what services they do or don't provide on Chorus infrastructure - if you don't like the offering by one RSP simply move

But how will the elderly know if they are going to have the same service and features as they had before? In my previous post I outlined how some customers have been very loyal and have stayed since the beginning of Spark and Telecom or even NZPO. Humans aren’t particularly good with change, and the old saying goes “if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it”. Some customers may be disappointed or let down, but don’t understand that the PSTN has to go.

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#2729249 15-Jun-2021 17:13

The way these medical devices operate over PSTN is definitely trackable as they leave a distinct fingerprint. It comes down to an effort as opposed to technical capability.

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halper86

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#2729251 15-Jun-2021 17:16

cokemaster: The way these medical devices operate over PSTN is definitely trackable as they leave a distinct fingerprint. It comes down to an effort as opposed to technical capability.

I understand, but there still may be the possibility that there is no cell service at a customers residence. I am not trying to argue but every customer’s circumstances are different.

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#2729258 15-Jun-2021 17:37

Yes. There are a few moving pieces telcos need to factor in:
- Defer Wireless Voice in favour of baseband voice and prolong current implementation.
- do nothing, roll the dice and hope existing medical alarm service works with their wireless voice solution. Obviously has the risk of creating a body count for such a migration.
- identify customers who use medical alarms over PSTN and have a conversation with them on alternative solutions. Eg. 3G medical alarms or IP medical alarms (if they exist).

What route they choose is up to them but I’d strongly recommend reaching out to family members with medical alarms and copper.

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#2729259 15-Jun-2021 17:43

It’s also worth noting that there are no barriers stopping Spark from offering a baseband voice solution. Many of the technical components required are also required for offering existing Fibre and Wireless Voice.

It is predominantly a commercial decision to avoid paying LFC/Chorus input pricing that coincided with the age of the NEAX’s.

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halper86

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#2729269 15-Jun-2021 18:10

cokemaster: Yes. There are a few moving pieces telcos need to factor in:
- Defer Wireless Voice in favour of baseband voice and prolong current implementation.
- do nothing, roll the dice and hope existing medical alarm service works with their wireless voice solution. Obviously has the risk of creating a body count for such a migration.
- identify customers who use medical alarms over PSTN and have a conversation with them on alternative solutions. Eg. 3G medical alarms or IP medical alarms (if they exist).

What route they choose is up to them but I’d strongly recommend reaching out to family members with medical alarms and copper.

Spark should implement a special migration team for these customers, but again the customer should have final say. Family should be informed of the proposed changes, with being able to talk to the relative about the situation and requirements, working to choose the best solution.

cokemaster: It’s also worth noting that there are no barriers stopping Spark from offering a baseband voice solution. Many of the technical components required are also required for offering existing Fibre and Wireless Voice.

It is predominantly a commercial decision to avoid paying LFC/Chorus input pricing that coincided with the age of the NEAX’s.

It would be the easiest option for the customer, with no changes on premise to use BBIP, however Spark being Spark - this would not be a financially viable solution. Current copper charges are ~$55 for BB Copper, whereas I am pretty sure it is the same for the rest of the options. It all comes down to profit over people, but that's just business. I am sure Spark could sacrifice some of their profit for their long standing and loyal superannuant customers, just as they do with their "Gold Talker" over-65's mobile plans (https://www.spark.co.nz/shop/mobile-plans/gold-plans.html) but I do understand that have larger profit margins being delivered over their own network.

If only it could be left status quo for the benefit of these customers.

SomeoneSomewhere

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#2729271 15-Jun-2021 18:14

The issue is that installing new VoIP line cards/ISAM-V for ~300k lines when they're losing voice customers at ~100k/year is commercially untenable. It would probably be a 9-figure project.

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#2729272 15-Jun-2021 18:17

SomeoneSomewhere:

The issue is that installing new VoIP line cards/ISAM-V for ~300k lines when they're losing voice customers at ~100k/year is commercially untenable. It would probably be a 9-figure project.

They are only loosing customers because of forced migration. If they didn't announce that they would be decommissioning the NEAX and that customers have to move to new technologies, the decline in voice customers would not be as great.

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#2729286 15-Jun-2021 18:33

They are losing customers because voice at home is no longer viable for most people. It's up to the companies providing these medical alarms to get off the pstn line for monitoring. Those things cost a fortune and it's inexcusable for them to just shrug their shoulders when the writing has been on the wall for copper lines for 10+ years now.

If someone needs assistance with this it's a matter for a govt department to provide it, not a company to provide welfare in the form of special migration teams etc.

Here's the date. Use the box we provided or change provider. On that date either close the account or move the number to the 4g box.

Richard rich.ms

nztim

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#2729288 15-Jun-2021 18:38

richms:

Here's the date. Use the box we provided or change provider. On that date either close the account or move the number to the 4g box.

Tell that to those in Miramar.... that has dragged on and on for over 7 months now

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SomeoneSomewhere

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#2729300 15-Jun-2021 19:13

halper86:

SomeoneSomewhere:

The issue is that installing new VoIP line cards/ISAM-V for ~300k lines when they're losing voice customers at ~100k/year is commercially untenable. It would probably be a 9-figure project.

They are only loosing customers because of forced migration. If they didn't announce that they would be decommissioning the NEAX and that customers have to move to new technologies, the decline in voice customers would not be as great.

NEAX is screwed. I would use stronger terms but they're not allowed here.

Rumours I heard is they were bidding on eBay for obsolete spares to keep the equipment going more than a decade ago, and the only reason they're still running is the reducing number of customers is letting them cannibalise the bits that are still working but no longer needed.

Remember that the NEAXs are 1980s computer equipment.

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