True life: I once lived without home internet for three years because I hated my ISP options (and also couldn’t afford it). The library and the unlimited data plan on my phone got me through that period of my life.

Now I’m in a position to set up internet service again, and this time I don’t have the luxury of an unlimited data plan. I’m with Republic Wireless, which is dirt cheap but runs on wifi most of the time — so half of my phone data is tied to wifi.

I’ve also committed myself to posting on this blog every day, so internet is a necessity.

Since I point-blank refuse to contract with Comcast and my new landlord will not allow a dish on the building, my choices are Century Link or Frontier.

Frontier sounded promising (in theory).

Storytime:

  • I called Frontier because I heard they had just rolled out in my neighborhood. I was moving into a new place and needed Internet, and this was when Comcast/Verizon opposition to Net Neutrality was really starting to peak.
  • Fronter had great pricing and options, but couldn’t get a technician to do the setup for 2 weeks. Also, they wanted over $100 for the setup fee. I said thanks, but no thanks, my job depends on me having Internet access to tend to emergencies that could pop up in the middle of the night, so 2 weeks with no connectivity is a showstopper. We hang up the call and I never signed up, agreed to, authorized, whatever — I at no point during this brief phone call elected to be a Frontier customer.
  • Frontier processes me as a new customer. They send me a modem in the mail, and then a past due notice, saying I’m 60 days past due on my setup fees.
  • I called Frontier and asked them “what the fuck.” They proceed to promise me that it was just a mistake. The rep instructed me that ‘I didn’t need to return the modem, I could just throw it away (wtf) and that this would all get cleared up when the next “cycle” ran or whatever.’ (I got all of this in writing)
  • 30 days later, I got a notice from Frontier notifying me that they were turning my account over to third-party collections. I freak the fuck out on customer service and on Twitter until I got a senior manager in their support org speaking with me directly on the phone. She finally cleared things up, and I got all of the outcomes in writing from her directly.

So, long story long, FUCK FRONTIER.

 

Looks like I’m stuck with Century Link.