Dry Loop Fee on DSL 6 Plan

[Jody Thornton]

I'm happily using the DSL 6 mbps basic plan in my area of Richmond Hill, Ontario. The wiring in my immediate area is somewhat shoddy as confirmed by two Bell techs, and since there is going to be later development in the area, there is no incentive for Bell to fix it right now.

All of that is fine, except that I'm paying an $8 dry loop fee on top of the $34.95 for my DSL 6 mbps package. That means with taxes in, I pay just over $45 for a lower speed entry level package. I'm happy with what I have, but I'm paying WAY TOO MUCH MONEY for it, and I'd like it cheaper.

I used to be with Velcom, and I was getting $29 (taxes in) for 7 mbps DSL with a 75 GB data cap. To me, that was just about right. I switched to VMedia when Velcom jumped their prices up. VMedia came in at $32 and change with taxes in. That's still a great deal for 6 mbps. But now with the price increase, and the dry loop fee, the cost becomes somewhat unreasonable.

Going to a higher DSL package is not a reasonable option with the poorer wiring in my area, as I'll just get more time outs and disconnects. My DSL work reasonably well at 6 mbps. I really don't want to switch to a cable option. I really just want to get my service more cheaply.

I've called the customer care SEVERAL TIMES over the last few years, trying to come to a cheaper deal. In April, I was going to switch to GEMS Telecom, but VMedia customer care waived the dry loop fee for four months. That brings my after tax total to $36.11. I could live with that - but I want to get that price PERMANENTLY. That is a somewhat reasonable price. $45 is not.

Is there anything that can be done here at all. I don't want to say I'm leaving and use loyalty departments to sway pricing to my favour. I just wish I could get my dry loop waived.

[MattVMedia]

Hi Jody,

Thanks for your comment here - we would LOVE to offer cheaper prices for all internet plans!

Unfortunately, our pricing is largely determined by our costs, and the bulk of these are set by the underlying facility provider and a hard cost for us.

If we look at DSL 6/FTTN 7 as an example, Bell bills us a $24.xx monthly access tariff for this speed. If a dry loop is required, then an additional fee of $8 is applied to this. We then have upstream transit costs, a cost for the IP address, overhead, and a (tiny) markup. As you can see, there really isn't any room to reduce our plan price here, without selling at a loss. Any discount we offer is essentially a good will gesture, where we would break even or provide service at a loss for a small period of time, hoping to retain your business and that you'll ultimately stick with us at our regular price.

A few years ago, the monthly access tariff for this speed was $14.xx monthly. Us, along with others, were able to offer better pricing than we currently do, as a result of this reduced monthly access rate. Unfortunately, this monthly access rate has since increased substantially, and independent providers like VMedia have no choice but adjust pricing accordingly.

I know this isn't the answer you wanted, but I hope you'll find the insight valuable.

[Jody Thornton]

That is the most comprehensive answer I've yet received. I want to really lobby the CRTC to allow resellers a lower wholesale cost. There's a lot to go through in your answer, but I do appreciate your time in making it. Thank you.