Feb 222008
 

At the very bottom, above the line is “Customer Service Updates” link

Well, I didn’t believe it. Foxtel Customer Service has been down for over a week. Nope, I’m not exaggerating. And I don’t mean, busy or hard to get through. I mean “sorry for the inconvenience but we can’t take your call right now.” Clunk.

The problem? I organised Foxtel with IQ for my aged parents (they’ll hate that) in Adelaide. But the box blew up around last Thursday 14th. The technician that arrived put in a new box and said the SIM card (or whatever the equivalent in an IQ cable TV box is) needed to initialise but that Foxtel was ‘having a few issues‘ but it should be fixed in the next 2 hours.

SIX DAYS LATER: there was a small notification on the Foxtel site that said if your box was attended to on February 13th or 14th (see bottom message) to re-contact them through a special contact forum. Over the preceding six days, my parents tried over and over again to get through the on the 131 999 number. To be told “busy, hang up and try again later“. Clunk.

Their customer service system sucks. Why can’t they look up which technicians went to which customers over a 2-day period? Why did my parents have to ring every hour on the hour (you better believe it) to no avail?

So second problem: I organised the account for my parents. I gave over my credit card and paid the initial amount. Then my parents got the bill, which I told Foxtel to send to me. And now I still can’t get through to Billing on 131 999. Yep, you guessed it, still getting “busy, hang up and try again later“. Anyone else noticed problems with Foxtel?
We will stay home and watch Foxtel: when you tell us what is going on, why your customer service, billing and technical support have been offline for over a week, and when it’s all going to be fixed.

You should know, it’s not a difficult thing to organise an “overflow” agency to take calls. Foxtel are happy to push out to overflow during big campaign times, why not during disaster unrecovery?

I’m off interstate tomorrow for a week, goodness only knows when I’ll be able to call up to get the billing fixed. Grrrrr.

Link to me, or email me, or comment if you’ve heard any news please?

Nov 122007
 

Don’t be cross with me, but I feel strangely comforted by the thought of a higher authority (Google) watching over me, plumbing the shallow depths of my consciousness, listening to the household dramas (via their ambient patent on PC/mobile device) and sending me signs and symbols (oh, ok, Ads) that I need to hear and see. Now be honest, don’t you? So nice that someone cares and is concerned and interested. Someone who is Not Evil of course. Or Inept. Governments need not apply. “Give me six lines written by the most honorable of men, and I will find an Continue Reading…

Nov 112007
 

I am often asked at conferences what I think the future of defamation and copyright and privacy will be, legal-wise. I always feel like a right wally saying “the laws will change, I guarantee it”. It’s the one weak area of my presentation – people understand that change is coming but don’t believe that it will be that drastic. Maybe it will be individuals changing the laws, maybe a “higher power” like government. But I really want to yell out – FACE IT, PEOPLE, IT’S ALREADY CHANGED. We’re just waiting for the laws to catch up. Intel Official: Say Goodbye Continue Reading…