Wilkes Telecommunications

To whom it may concern;Ms [redacted] did return the mentioned equipment, minus the missing peices After reviewing the order and speaking with the staff involved in the event in question I have confirmed that Ms [redacted] was advised a charge for the box would be applied to the account There is no practice in place that charges for just a power supply, as a set top box is not able to be returned to stock for reuse without the power supply Because I did determine Ms [redacted] was not quoted what the actual cost of the equipment was I am issuing an adjustment of $ This reduces the cost of set top box by half Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to resolve Ms [redacted] concerns Best regards,Amanda PerryVP of Sales & Marketing

To Whom It May Concern: Wilkes Telephone Membership Corporation (WTMC), a Telephone Cooperative, is the parent company of the brand Wilkes Communications, Inc Members that live in our traditional ILEC service area are being provided services through WTMC Such is the case for the services Ms [redacted] had subscribed to Being a Cooperative in rural Wilkes County creates a business model unlike a traditional service provider WTMC is held to certain regulations by the FCC as a provider of last resort for phone services WTMC is a participant in a tariff managed by NECA and because of the Universal Service Support we receive from High Cost Loop to ensure that the most rural parts of the county are provided with internet service there are things outside of our control For the internet service Mrs [redacted] subscribes to our cost to the tariff is $when provided with a phone As an internet only service with no phone that same internet cost would increase to more than $ In addition to this we have to factor in overhead cost such as tech support, back-haul, user admin fees and such Based on these factors the decision was made to not offer an internet only service to the membership It is simply cost prohibitive to do soPlease know that we are working diligently to keep all of our services affordable for our entire membership We are following the industry changes so that when the shift has been made to a broadband focus we are ready We understand that our members are already asking for this change from us but until regulations are changed to match those requests we will have to continue to offer the most affordable internet connection in a bundle with telephone accessShould you need any further information please do not hesitate to contact meSincerely, Amanda [redacted] Director of Sales & Marketing

When we first moved to NC, we ordered a landline from Wilkes Telecommunications When broadband services started, we also ordered that service Now we are trying to terminate their landline services (as we have moved to cell phones), but they are refusing to terminate that service without also terminating our internet service We have been trying for approximately three months, but they have refused multiple times This address has exactly ONE ISP - Wilkes Telecommunications They are charging us money for a service that we have tried to terminate multiple times now We no longer have a need for this product, we do not want to purchase this product, but the most that they will do is strip it down to $/ month This means that they are now charging $per year for a product we do not wish to purchase; because they have no competition in the region, they know that they can charge for services we would not otherwise purchase - it is nothing short of extortion They say th

On July 27, Ms*** called and reported an outage with her service to the after-hours support. The trouble ticket was created by a member of our dispatch team at 7:a.mthe morning of July 28th and assigned to a technician. The technician had the issue resolved and the
ticket closed by 10:a.mthat same day The technician found that the battery baused for the NID to provide service was bad. He replaced it and restored services. Ms*** requested that the router in her home be replaced as well because it was not working. The technician could not replace the router. Wilkes Communications offers a managed experience by providing a router for a monthly fee. Ms*** does not subscribe to the service. When she called into the office after the original ticket was closed and spoke with the Dispatcher about getting the router replaced, she was offered the monthly service but declined. Ms***’s service to her home was out for less than hours. Outage credits are not provided unless the outage exceeds longer than hours as an industry standard. If we were to calculate a credit based on the services she subscribes too, what her monthly cost is on those services and the time of the outage it would be less than the $she mentionsIn regards to the history of issues with the company. The last trouble reported by Ms*** was in July of and was resolved within the same day. When looking through all previous history it shows that Ms***’s reports of issues with service are resolved within hoursI apologize for the frustration she experienced with having the issue but the technician responded quickly and resolved her outage. We can replace the router and install a new one for the customer if she would like to subscribe to the managed service that she was offeredIf there are any other questions regarding this please feel free to let me know. I can be reached at 336-973-Best regards, Amanda P***Customer Sales & Support Manager

I have had nothing but issues with this company since 2014; the ironic issue is they're the only provider in my area, so I have no other choiceI've taken off work multiple times due to their inferior equipmentI was without service for an unacceptable amount of time, however when I ask what can be done due to the inconvenience, I'm told a $credit can be issued??? As a patron of their business, this is certainly an insult, and bad business, given the breadth of issues encounteredWhen this was brought to their attention in a very tactful manner, I was forced to speak with a manager named Josh, who talked over me and offered no assistanceIt appears all aspects of true "customer service" and all the behaviors that are associated with the like, have gone out the window with this company

To whom it may concern;Ms*** did return the mentioned equipment, minus the missing peices. After reviewing the order and speaking with the staff involved in the event in question I have confirmed that Ms*** was advised a charge for the box would be applied to the account. There
is no practice in place that charges for just a power supply, as a set top box is not able to be returned to stock for reuse without the power supply. Because I did determine Ms*** was not quoted what the actual cost of the equipment was I am issuing an adjustment of $91.16. This reduces the cost of set top box by half. Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to resolve Ms*** concerns. Best regards,Amanda PerryVP of Sales & Marketing

Wilkes Telecommunications advertised a price package that if I never changed it they would never increase my price They had an overall rate increase and changed my price You see the consumer was the one who was told if the consumer didn't change it they would not increase the price I am the consumer and I kept my end and they changed the price on me saying that they no longer offer that Whoa They lied to me They did not hold up their end of the deal they told the consumer a lie if they did not change then they would not incur a price increaseThey lied and people bought these packages and now are forced to increaseThey should have not lie to the consumer and they did When will corporations be held to uphold the promises they make to a consumer then they change it or create a situation where they think it is okay to have lied It was my prerogative to change and I didn't

Re: Complaint # To whom it may concern; Mr*** originally signed up for an internet service with Wilkes Communications in 2010. During this time period, our services were offered over a copper network. The bandwidth available was very limited because of the restrictions
associated with the copper network. Internet services are available to be installed for no charge with a one-year agreement. This is the avenue that Mr*** choose at the time. After the agreement terms are completed, the service is considered a month to month service. Mr*** contract did not state that the rate is guaranteed for life and there are no promotions that support the rate for lifeOver the course of several years, Wilkes Communications invested in the network and upgraded the service to run over a Fiber-to-the-Home Connection. This allows for faster, more reliable Internet service. With the Internet of things growing larger and larger on a daily basis, it was a company decision to help ensure a high quality of service for customers to do a network cleand upgrade customers to a Fiber Internet plan. In September of 2015, Mr*** services were upgraded to a 6M/1M internet connection. With all of the information available on the internet, the size of websites and the expectations of consumers, bandwidth speeds from would not operate the service appropriately Around that same time the FCC approved to increase what they consider acceptable internet. It is now an industry standard that a 25M/3M connection is considered acceptable access to the internet. With the magnitude of regulatory and support changes happening and this decision from the FCC, in the Wilkes Communications Board of Directors was presented with a proposal to increase Internet plans and television rates. The was done to help offset the loss Wilkes Communications, along with many other telcos, are set to experience with the regulatory changes. The board voted and approved the company wide rate changes. In those changes customers are now eligible for free managed when taking a speed that meets that minimum. For customers who were sitting far below that minimum a smaller plan called Internet Lite was assigned so that their billing changes were not as drastic. This Internet Lite plan is what Mr*** was assigned to, thereby increasing his speed from a 6M/1M connection to a plan that is provisioned as a 12M/2M serviceA study was completed prior to the board’s vote. Marketing compared Wilkes Communications’ rates to other Cooperatives within the state. Even with the increase in plans we are still below the average charged by the cooperatives for comparable services. Notifications were sent to customers through bill messages and newsletter announcements about the changes. When Mr*** called into the office regarding his increase he was offered a credit of $for months which he refusedIf you should need any additional information please feel free to let me know. Thank you for allowing us the opportunity to respond to Mr*** concernsBest regards, Amanda ***Director of Sales & Marketing Wilkes Communications, Inc

On December 27th,I returned two set tops,one power cord and one remote control to the headquarters of Wilkes Telecommunications on River Street because I was transferring my account to my new addressI admitted to the customer service agent that one remote control had been stolen by my previous roommates and the power cord for set-top had been chewed in two by my puppyThe customer service agent took the damaged cord into another room to find a supervisor to ask how I should be billedThe customer service agent was gone for an unnecessarily long timeWhen she returned she told me that I would only be billed for the replacement of one remote and one power cord because all of the power cords were interchangeable for each set topI agree and left the roomWhen I received my bill I saw I had been charged for $for the replacement of one set top along with $for the replacement of one remote controlI called customer service to inquire about the billing and was told that I w

To Whom It May Concern: Wilkes Telephone Membership Corporation (WTMC), a Telephone Cooperative, is the parent company of the brand Wilkes Communications, Inc.  Members that live in our traditional ILEC service area are being provided services through WTMC.  Such is the case for the...

services Ms[redacted] had subscribed to.  Being a Cooperative in rural Wilkes County creates a business model unlike a traditional service provider.  WTMC is held to certain regulations by the FCC as a provider of last resort for phone services.  WTMC is a participant in a tariff managed by NECA and because of the Universal Service Support we receive from High Cost Loop to ensure that the most rural parts of the county are provided with internet service there are things outside of our control.  For the internet service Mrs. [redacted] subscribes to our cost to the tariff is $41.57 when provided with a phone.  As an internet only service with no phone that same internet cost would increase to more than $152.32.  In addition to this we have to factor in overhead cost such as tech support, back-haul, user admin fees and such.  Based on these factors the decision was made to not offer an internet only service to the membership.  It is simply cost prohibitive to do so. Please know that we are working diligently to keep all of our services affordable for our entire membership.  We are following the industry changes so that when the shift has been made to a broadband focus we are ready.  We understand that our members are already asking for this change from us but until regulations are changed to match those requests we will have to continue to offer the most affordable internet connection in a bundle with telephone access. Should you need any further information please do not hesitate to contact me. Sincerely, Amanda [redacted] Director of Sales & Marketing

I am rejecting this response because: this is not an amicable resolution due to all the inconvenience and poor customer service provided.
Regards,[redacted]