Videotron Rant Thread

[rainey]

I just checked the videotron website and it appears that the free terminal for 2 years is no longer offered. If this is the case they will lose more people who willl switch to fibe as they really are offering great package discounts and of course the free terminal.

[proggy]

Their new promotion is BASIC INTERNET Monthly data transfer capacity of 5 GB( omg 5gb haha) for uploads and downloads combined.HD BASIC SERVICE which has a small and ridiculous selection,and finally Telephony: Residential Line for $62.95.

[Tanta]

They are offering Bell returnees the 3 services for 84$/month for two years here. Try to find that on their website....!
Includes free Cisco HDPVR + additionnal free HD STB, 15 à la carte, telephone and high speed internet (8 Mb) - usual cap of 50 Gb.
With these offerings, I can't see why an existing V customer cannot upgrade to the Cisco box for free....

[Cardiac]

Ahhh... the equipment upgrades... We can all wish that, but it ain't gonna happen.

Long term benefits for Videotron to do so would be eliminating all old v. 1 infrastructure and support, saving them a lot of $$$, headaches, and resources. Not only that, they would have more resources to allocate to v. 2, improving what is already in place. And it would be simple... Send out a letter stating that by such and such a date, your terminals will no longer function. Provide some exchange or rebate program.

However, most companies aren't willing to take the financial hit in the immediate now. The cost to replace all the old SA or Samsung terminals would be astronomical and I doubt Videotron would take the immediate hit for what could save them money in the future.

Eventually, when they do phase out v. 1, they might have no choice but to offer rebates/exchanges. But don't look for it anytime soon.

[rogue17]

Cardiac

Can you provide specifics as to what is offered as far as Fibe TV and Internet. I'm guessing the TV is the basic package with no extras but I'd like to know what Internet is offered (Fibe 16?).

That's a sweet deal. I almost switched over to Bell earlier this year but the kicker was how much more I would pay for their landline than what I pay for Videotron. All the savings for switching over were lost in that alone. If they are offering a "free" PVR for only TWO services, that's enough for me to switch

The Internet is 5/1/15. 5Mbp download, 1 MbpUpload, 15 Gigs total consumption.


As for the 2 services + Free PVR. This is not on the Bell site. It is a letter my girlfriend got in the mail.

First 6 months the price is $39.90 for Basic TV and Internet with free PVR for 36 months.After that it is yours.

After the 6th month it is $54.31. You may want to call them and see if it can be had in your area.

I still have the latter. Too bad I don't have a scanner. Or I could show you. She got the letter in June. This in the St.Michel area.


I don't see Videotron matching this offer. Already they are too stingy and took a long time to offer the free PVR albeit for just 2 years.

[chillonhill]

Hum Bell is looking sweeter, although I used to hate them, I had internet for 15 years by dsl it was a pain, there cell charges were exhorbitant, and had Star choice for TV, I switched about 4 years ago to videotron, their internet is good, reliable and problem free, so is land line phone. until power outage. have 2 land lines which I may keep with them and maybe internet.
Yes there mobile is cheap, but friggen sucks, no service in many places such as a Costco even, This plan is coming to an end, and will move on to something else again. especially that their BBerry Bold phones were useless, and instead of switching us to a better Bold one, they give us crappier ones as replacement, that was my final straw with them re cell service. I reminded them I fork out 300.00 a month or all their services,
We are sorry, Ok no problemo, dont want my business I guess.

Their TV is ok, but not near enough english specialty channels, a bit better than a few years ago, but compared to Bells selection its pretty sad.
So Maybe Bell is in my future again, with their fibre.
Getting shafted by videotron, all those excess fees, adds up,

So you are saying that I can get Bell cell & fibre TV (2 services) and get a free terminal. I think fibre is available in Quebec city
Sounds interesting.

[rogue17]

chillonhill

Yes there mobile is cheap, but friggen sucks, no service in many places such as a Costco even

Man do I know what you mean. I have seen many palces where my old dumb Telus(CDMA) got reception but not with my Nexus One with Videotron.

And sometimes people call me an the phone doesn't even ring. Doesn't even show missed call and goes straight to voicemail. Or the phone doesn't ring and when I check the time I see a missed call.

chillonhill

So you are saying that I can get Bell cell & fibre TV (2 services) and get a free terminal. I think fibre is available in Quebec city
Sounds interesting.

My girlfriend got letter offering 2 sevices. Basic TV and internet for $39.90 for ther first months. Than it goes to $54.31. It says tous frais mensuels inclus(All monthly fees included). So when I broke down the prices I saw there was no fee for the HD PVR.And it looked like it was free.

So I called the 1-888 number and the agent said The HD PVR was free for 36 months than after that it was hers.And this only with 2 services

She got this letter in June and she is in Montreal(St. Michel) so I don't know if it is available else where.

[Cardiac]

So, I'm assuming you can upgrade either service and still profit from the freee PVR, as long as it's two services?

I mean, 15GB is not a lot if you're on online gamer and use Netflix and who is happy with just the basic TV package?

I'm not concerned as I am in MTL (Lasalle) as well.

[rogue17]

Cardiac

So, I'm assuming you can upgrade either service and still profit from the freee PVR, as long as it's two services?

Yes you can upgrade the internet service and keep basic TV and get the free HD PVR.

The thing that I like with Bell is that they do not impose alot of conditions on your tv programming to get the HD PVR. Both very basic services qualifies you for the free HD PVR.

With Videotron you have to spend a certain amount on your tv package to get the free HD PVR. I beleive you have to get their libre 15 or telemax package plus their HD option($3.03). You can not just get their basic and ask for the HD PVR. They will not give it to you.

But it Bell you can get all minimum services and get the HD PVR.

[expressmoria]

I read on twitter that Videotron will no longer be charging extra fees for the HD versions of TSN and Sportsnet.

I do not have these channels in my a la carte selection due to the extra cost but if this is no longer the case I may reconsider.

Not sure what will happen to those of you paying this extra fee, will your monthly bill be reduced accordingly?

[rainey]

espressmoria,
I read the same thing on a french forum yesterday. Apparently this is slated to happen Sept. 1st. I have as part of my a la carte so will be nice for them to waive the cost.

Will let you know when I get the September bill.

[deck]

TSN and TSN2 HD both appeared for me this week. I don't subscribe to the HD versions but I do get SD TSN and TSN2. I have a 30 channel a la carte package.

When I check online the TSN HD package is gone from the HD section and both HD channels are listed in the channels I subscribe to. My bill has not changed.

[expressmoria]

Interesting article in today’s Montreal Gazette called “Bell's Fibe TV gaining momentum”.

Link

Here are some quotes from this article

Fibe TV is currently available to about 2.3 million households in Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto and its suburbs, with plans to grow by 1 million more households by the end of the year. It now covers about half of Videotron’s coverage area, and it appears to be making the cable provider nervous.

Videotron released its next generation digital television service last May, and while the service was meant to rival Fibe, it was launched without all its features ready. Dépatie said Thursday by the end of the year, the company would add a multi-room feature so customers can record a program on one television and watch the program on another one, something that has been standard on Fibe since the beginning.

“They seem to be struggling to stop the bleeding,” Poitras said.

Nice to see how a bit of competition can shake things up even for a stalwart like Videotron who seem to take their Quebec based customers for granted.

[rainey]

deck, thanks for the heads up.

I just spoke with Videotron and after some searching he found the information and yes the hd fee for TSN/SN HD combo is being removed. If you subscribe to TSN or Sportsnet SD you automatically get the HD version.

Finally some good news on the videotron rant.

[rogue17]

rainey

I just spoke with Videotron and after some searching he found the information and yes the hd fee for TSN/SN HD combo is being removed. If you subscribe to TSN or Sportsnet SD you automatically get the HD version.

Finally some good news on the videotron rant

God knows I have dissed Videotron on this thread but that is great news Rainey.

Finally Videotron is taking initiative instead of just reacting to Bell's promos and offers.

I hope there in no fine print concerning TSN HD and SportsNet HD. I would not surprise me if Videotron put conditions like Get TSN HD and SportsNet HD when you subscribe to TVA Sports.LOL.