AT&T internet bundled with DirecTV

[mikestock]

If you haven't had to try to solve a problem with AT&T or DirecTV lately you're in for an experience. I have had DirecTV for 21 years and have mostly had good experience with problem solving, but I had a sense of dread when I read that AT&T was taking over DirecTV.

In February, while walking through Costco I met a lady selling AT&T internet and asked about bundling internet with my existing DirecTV account. I was upset because Spectrum was constantly raising my rate. The AT&T sales lady gave me a price of $40/mo. for internet and waived installation charge.

In reality this turned into a nightmare that has cost me 3 to 4 hours on the phone trying to get my bundling straight (or, at least that's what I thought). I set up auto billing and did check my payment monthly, thinking all was well. I ended up getting charged some up front charges but the setup was to refund all the charges during the first 6 months. I had a difficult time following the billing but I was only paying $115/mo. so I felt pretty happy.

This week I was got an email informing me that I was $85 overdue and had a total owed of $155.66. It referred me to my account which said I owed zero. The email stated that I must pay immediately or my service would be suspended. I asked how many months that $155.66 covered and was told it was for 2 months. I responded that I was promised $40/month for internet, bundled. And that's when the 4 hr. ordeal began. AT&T's phone links are all screwed up. I talked to a total of 8 people. Once I thought I was getting somewhere with someone who spoke decent English. Then the line went dead.

After 4 hrs. plus on the phone with people I couldn't understand I finally found that I actually had two accounts. One was DirecTV and the other was AT&T. They told me that I owed $155.66, due immediately or my service would be suspended.

Finally, I think I got someone who got me on the right track to resolve the ordeal.

For any average unretired Joe without time on his hands this could have never been resolved.

THE 4 HOURS PLUS IS NO EXAGGERATION.

[Acampingwewillg]

I have to chime in but first let me say I think Sat TV is mostly on its way out, Dish and Direct!
Like the OP, I've had Direct for over 25 years and I was late getting into the HD upgrades. With all the changes that have taken place along with changes still coming, my thoughts of keeping my service in the MH became worrisome.

Currently on the MH, I have two auto Direct dishes one of which is domed but neither set up for HD. I don't know in the months of different conversations I had with Direct TV how many hours I spoke with them but be assured it was into the teens! Bottom line was I needed a specific receiver and I was assured of being able to get that received when needed. When needed, no one had a clue as to what I was talking about. Buying a specific receiver was possible but then you heard horror stories about getting the equip activated.

Hard to explain it all here but with all my conversations with Supervisors and their Supervisors, no one could explain what I eventually found out on my own, that being getting a third party to buy specific equip and having that third party activate said equip.

In a word, I have little to no confidence in Direct TV staying in the Sat business much longer...Dish may last a bit longer but I too believe it will be mostly be non Sat based data soon( wifi, cell data etc etc).

[mikestock]

AT&T was once the largest corporation in the world. They got so big that the SEC forced a split up. They have acted like a salvage company, ever since. Everything the touch turns to worm food. Rather than try to improve their holdings they try to cheap their way to profit.

Moving their customer service to foreign countries and having their agents rename themselves with Western sounding names is supposed to fool us into thinking we are just as well off as ever. They think we're that stupid.

I was told that you could ask any foreign agent for any company to transfer you to a US agent and they were required to. That's obviously not true. It never worked for me. I truly have a very difficult understanding them due to hearing loss in my 78 yer old ears.

[theoldwizard1]

AT&T "corporate" is so screwed up I sold a large percentage of their stock because I don't know how they can continue paying their dividend.

Until sometime in the 1990s, the "fat cats" at AT&T headquarters did not need to do much knowing their billions of miles of copper was worth billion of dollars ! Even when they started to get nervous their plan was "fiber to the neighborhood", abandoning much of that asset in place. FTTN was paired with U-verse. These two cost the company billion to roll out. I have yet to meet one person who would say they had a good experience with U-verse.

In the past 20 years or so, they have had the "reverse Midas touch". Everything they touch turns to coal. As you drive through suburbia, you still see billions of mile of copper telephone wire hanging on poles. Some is dead and the rest is under utilized.

[roam1]

after many many multiple hour phone calls being passed around AT&T, I dumped them, they are a multi headed cluster ......

[K_Charles]

We had directv for many years and switched to Dish a couple years ago. Directv sends these flyers in the mail that would take me an hour just to read the fine print. The ATT store says I can't have directv in my camper. It seems they don't know what they are doing, I'll stick with dish.

[mikestock]

I haven't had any experience with Dish and would definitely consider switching had I not spent so much on automated system for the motor home.

I was okay with DirecTV until AT&T took over. The single worst thing about this company now is the roadblocks they throw up when you try to rectify a problem. I have rarely spoken with anyone I didn't have to struggle to understand and to get them to understand me. The funniest thing about them is they all give you their name as Grace, George, Ralph or Liz and I'm wondering who that's supposed to fool.

[lhenry8113]

Mike-I definitely understand what you are saying-we are in So. Calif.-ATT took over our DirectV Act. They eliminated channels we've had for years and wanted to charge me additional $$'s for channels we have always had in our PKG. The Pkg we had with D'TV is no more and Pkg we opted to have with ATT is more $$'s and still doesn't include all our favorite channels-they are more $$'s or more expensive PKG. Am seriously thinking of switching to Dish.