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I feel discriminated against for not wanting to use Verizon equipment

To put it bluntly customer service sucks! I am told that they cant give me technical assistance because i dont use a Verizon issued Actiontec Router. When I switched to using my own equipment no mention of needing to hold onto their router was given - but a cheery representative was happy to issue a pre paid label and shipping box. I have had to purchase a used Actiontec for $35 just so Verizon respond to my ticket. Then I get told that my TV wont work without it - yes it does! I get basic local TV, it is decoded by my QAM enabled TV sets. But Verizon insist on issuing and beilling me for cable cards. When I return them, they keep billing me for them, despite acknowledging receipt. This is insane. Nobody will take the cable cards off my bill even though they admit they are not activated or used. My original tech complaint was with the Internet service. I use a streaming media service. I get TV from the UK streamed to a set top box in the USA. Verizon fail to understand that this is not a website, its streaming media from point to point. My stream dropped suddenly from 3,000 -5,000kbps to 300kbps and an unwatchable choppy video. When I complain to Verizon they say its because I am not using their router. Even with their router this is the case. However when I signed up to a 30 day trial of comcast Internet the same equipment worked flawlessly giving me a solid 2,000 - 4,000kbps at all hours of the day and night. I challenged Verizon, because I believe that they are throttling my stream because I dont subscribe to their premium TV services and pay extortionate rates for their box rentals. The tech looked at my computers and did traceroutes on both the Comcast connection and the Verizon one. The routing is identical except for the initial ISP part. Verizon denied throttling or restricting my Internet usage. But this side by side traceroute proves that they do. During this call the speed miraculously restored to its formet glory! I subsequently cancelled Comcast. Yesterday My stream dropped back to unwatchable 100 - 300kbps again. I pay for 75/35 Internet solely to guarantee this video stream will work. I want to cancel all my services, but I am trapped with fios because I am required by PA law to have a fixed line phone as I take care of other people's kids in my home. Apparently its impossible to return your telephone back to Verizon NON FIOS once an ONT has been installed because they remove the copper wires from the pole to your home and there are no other home phone providers locally, who will give me analog phone sevice. So I must have a verizon Router to get tech support, Verizon Set top boxes or cable cards for TV services I dont want, and a verizon ONT to keep my home phone working. Yes this is a monopoly - and all I want to do is legally watch and stream TV from my home country uninterrupted. I still cant do that and have to pay VERIZON nearly $100 a month for the privelage. GO FIGURE!!!

Comments

[Deleted User]

Hi digimon900,

Your issue has been escalated to a Verizon agent. Please go to your profile page for the forum and look at the top of the middle column where you will find an area titled "My Support Cases". You can reach your profile page by clicking on your name beside your post, or at the top left of this page underneath the title of the board.

Under "My Support Cases" you will find a link to the private board where you and the agent may exchange information. This should be checked on a frequent basis, as the agent may be waiting for information from you before they can proceed with any actions. Please keep all correspondence regarding your issue in the private support portal.

Verizon_Support

We have not heard back from you on the issue. Please feel free to open another thread if you have any further questions.

Josh B

viafax999

Looks like they attempted to talk to you about your issues but you never bothered answering them so they dropped it.

You do not have to have tv service when you have a fios connection.

I'd take it up with customer service again and this time respond the emails they send you.

digimon900

They never sent any emails

gs0b

@digimon900 wrote:
They never sent any emails

They never said they would send you email. Verizon said they posted a message to a private area of these forums. They provided clear instructions on how to access that area. Please check there for the details; you should be able to re-open the support case they created.

Verizon doesn't throttle individual accounts based on the level of subscribed TV service. I have a basic level of TV service and get 50Mbps from FiOS Quantum all day long. Some web sites and streaming sites have issues, however they have nothing to do with the equipment in my home or the fiber network.

There is a known problem with Netflix streaming over FiOS. This stems from the business relationship between Verizon and Netflix that results in a global "throttle" at the network peering points. You can find plenty of details about this on the web. If you're favorite streaming source is similar to Netflix, that could be the problem. If it is, and if you're finding that a local cable company works better, then switching to them might be the best solution for you.

Good Luck
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