It seems that Orange plans on making some more "improvements" to its plans.

Some discussions on MSE about this:

• New Orange tariffs
  
• Orange to start charging for Delivery Reports.?
  
• Orange put the squeeze on Customers.Not so Bright Now.

Some "highlights" are charges for delivery reports and 10p minimum charge on pay as you go tariffs.

See here for pay as you go information.


Quote:

call charges The minimum charge for any call is 10p, and we have standardised the national call rate to 25p.

10 minimum charge! So all those call that go to an answerphone service (Orange Answerphone, BT1571 etc) will now cost twice as much!  :o

"Standardised;" is that the Oxford or Cambridge English dictionary definition? What is "the national call rate"? Have we not been here before?  ::)

Why do I keep coming to the conclusion that any changes or "improvements" a UK telecommunications makes are just a ploy to charge more for less?

BT's latest "promotion" is BT Value. There is a radio commercial running which advertises the Friends and Family Autoupdate. It includes 01/02 and 07 numbers. For those who use 0845/0844 dial-up ISPs, can they add that number manually, as it were, and does the Autoupdate remove this? Does it add those numbers that cost the most or the ones with the longest call durations?

Dave wrote on Mar 7^th, 2006 at 5:01pm:

BT's latest "promotion" is BT Value. There is a radio commercial running which advertises the Friends and Family Autoupdate. It includes 01/02 and 07 numbers. For those who use 0845/0844 dial-up ISPs, can they add that number manually, as it were, and does the Autoupdate remove this? Does it add those numbers that cost the most or the ones with the longest call durations?

I don't like the idea of F&F "autoupdate" for just that reason (although you can choose your best friend manually, which could be your ISP. Most 0844 numbers aren't eligible anyway). There are many more unanswered questions, such as when exactly does it update? Once a month or quarter? Will it add the numbers you used most in the last billing period for the next period, even though you might not call them again.

Also promoted on the oxymoronic "BT Value" page is BT Broadband Talk. This offers unlimited evening and weekend calls to geogrphical numbers for £2 a month. But hold on, with even BT's cheapest Option 1, an hour-long call only costs 5.5p. So this is only really of benefit to quite heavy users. What they fail to mention is that voice calls use quite a bit of bandwidth, and most ISPs place limits on this now. BT's own cheapest packages only offer 2GB/month or 6GB/month. This is going to be seriously dented by BT Broadband Talk.

jrawle wrote on Mar 8^th, 2006 at 2:58pm:

snip Also promoted on the oxymoronic "BT Value" page is BT Broadband Talk. This offers unlimited evening and weekend calls to geogrphical numbers for £2 a month. But hold on, with even BT's cheapest Option 1, an hour-long call only costs 5.5p. So this is only really of benefit to quite heavy users. What they fail to mention is that voice calls use quite a bit of bandwidth, and most ISPs place limits on this now. BT's own cheapest packages only offer 2GB/month or 6GB/month. This is going to be seriously dented by BT Broadband Talk.

I thought the ASA told off BT for claiming there Broadband talk was 'free' and 'unlimited' because the bandwith it used wasnt free nor was it unlimited due to the broadband cap.

Excluded Calls

Certain numbers are excluded from Friends & Family Auto Update:

Most Number Translated Services numbers (e.g. numbers beginning 0845 and 0870) are excluded from both the Calling Circle and as BestFriend. Section 2 of the BT Price List gives details of the excluded numbers. Exceptionally, 0845 numbers are excluded from the Calling Circle but such numbers can be nominated as the Best Friend

- Operator Controlled calls
- BT Pay&Call Customers making calls via BT TextDirect ie 1800X
- CreditCall charges
- European Mobile Satellite System (Emsat) calls
- Thuraya calls
- BT Service Numbers (eg 150, 151)
- Inmarsat M4 High Speed Data calls
- ISDN2 and ISDN2e Calling Feature Facility fees e.g. Call Return Press 3 (1471 3).

---------------
Friends & Family Auto Update gives you a 10% discount on the 5, 10 or 15 eligible numbers you call the most - depending on your BT Together Option. looks like its based on call duration
-----
5. You can change your BestFriend number once in any billing period this makes me think that once youve changed it, auto update cant change it

mc661 wrote on Mar 8^th, 2006 at 4:33pm:

I thought the ASA told off BT for claiming there Broadband talk was 'free' and 'unlimited' because the bandwith it used wasnt free nor was it unlimited due to the broadband cap.

Admittedly, they don't use the word "free". In fact, it's worded very carefully. They say there is "no charge" for evening and weekend calls. However, they do still say it's "unlimited" here:

http://www.btbroadbandvoice.com/bbv/brochureware/why_use_bb_voice.html

complaint filed.

I suspect ill get the standard, "we dont police websites" rubbish.

I'm surprised at the 1p for each confirmation text received.  This is a first and hope other networks don't follow Orange's demising ways - although the other networks would call it "aligning" their tariffs in line with other operators which in plain english means a price increase.  ;D

I'm on o2's Online tariff with 300texts and 150offpeak xnet mins for topping up by £15 each month and still get the £15 credit to spend as well.  Calls are currently 25p for first 3mins of calls that day then 5p thereafter (2p at weekends).  Minimum call charge is still 5p unlike Orange which are increasing theirs to 10p which I think Voda also charge 10p minimum call charge.

I think T-Mob also charges 10p min.

Oh well I signed up to a new 18 month contract in december 05.
T-Mob cant change my tariff or call charges until June 2007, otherwise its breech of contract and gives me a get-out clause as well.

I don't know what the minimum charge will be on Orange pay monthly tariffs, at the moment there are no minimum charges. I'm on OVP Virgin and pay the same as what Virgin Mobile subscribers pay on its pay as you go tariff but with no minimum charge!

On Orange Value Promise (OVP) tariffs, Orange's scheme that matches other providers' post paid (pay monthly) tariffs. That is all other providers so long as it's Vodafone, O2 or T-Mobile and it's not one of the following tariffs:

• EQ T-Mobile Relax 25
  
• T-Mobile Everyone Off-peak 200
  
• Vodafone Anytime 30
  
• EQ O2 25
  
• EQ Vodafone Business