There are far more important issues to deal with than the Rogers iPhone rates (e.g. the ridiculousness of Bill C-61, global warming, etc) but I was forced to comment after I received the exact same email from MS&L Digital (Rogers' American PR firm) that Tris Hussey received: (my current plan is to invoke the "Ian Bell option", i.e. import a unlocked 3G iPhone from France and buy a r*poff 1GB/month data plan from Rogers which gets around the 3 year contract!)
QUOTE (from Tris' blog which he received permission to post, the email I received is identical, anybody else get the exact same email?)
Hello,
My name is Nicole Burguess and I’m writing on behalf of Rogers to give you some additional information about the Rogers rate plans available for the iPhone.
The iPhone 3G bundles released June 27 are not the only price plans available to customers, they are the high value plans that allow Rogers customers to use the device to its fullest and offer considerable savings over separate voice and data plans that exist in market today.
That said, Rogers customers have more choices available to them and can use their existing voice and smartphone data plans if they wish. For example, they can select from the new data pricing (ranging from $30 for 300MB to $100 for 6GB or $50 Flex Rate plan) and add a voice plan, or they can choose a combined voice and data plan to best suit their individual needs.
Customers are not required to take the value packs, and can order most other features a la carte, such as $7 for Caller ID.
Existing customers can keep their existing voice service plan and pick a separate data plan (not in the iPhone 3G bundle) to meet their needs. They will need to check their upgrade eligibility, but any customer with a monthly service fee that is over $30 can upgrade to an iPhone 3G at $199 (for the 8GB model). Other options outside the iPhone bundle may be available depending on the customer’s individual information.
If you have any questions, please let me know and I will do my best to help you.
Sincerely,
Nicole Burguess
Account Executive | MS&L Digital
END QUOTE
Here's my response:
Hi Nicole:
Thank-you for your email but it does not respond to the concerns that many people including myself have namely:
1. Why are the contracts 3 years for the iPhone rather than 2 years or 1 year like they are elsewhere in the world?
2. Why is data so much more expensive for the iPhone than AT&T plans? Why is there no unlimited option? I can guess at reasons but this is something that Rogers in my opinion needs to make clear. I have been using a Fido "grandfathered data plan" for unlimited EDGE data for $50 a month. Until Rogers communicates clearly why an unlimited 3G data plan at a price of $100/month or less is nonviable, the lack of an affordable unlimited data plan is indefensible.
3. The lack of reasonably priced data plans is hindering Canada business which in the end hinders Rogers.
I'll be blogging the above and your response (unless you ask me otherwise) at rolandtanglao.com.
Cheers!
...Roland Tanglao +1 604 729 7924
p.s. Canadian idealists (of which I am not one) would be outraged that Rogers is reaching out to Canadian bloggers using an American PR firm (I realize you have a satellite office in Toronto but your headquarters are in the USA). I "googled" your firm and was encourage to find out that you have a social media practise and that you were behind the GM FastLane blog; hopefully you will influence Rogers to engage in social media and to clearly communicate in a timely fashion; something they have been incapable of in the past.
