I've just moved house and have no internet connection until mid next week. I've been without LFS for 2 days now, and i'm considering moving back until the broadband is installed ! ...
I'm already with NTL... Broadband customer no. 62... ! You'd think my loyalty would have been rewarded at some point but they give the free console, 3 months connection and 3 free games to new customers only...
It is this way anymore with all "service" companies. For example, I just switched my satelite TV over from Dish Network to DirecTV. Why? Because I've been a customer for 8 years, which means my equipment was 8 years old. It was extremely slow, I didn't even get all the programming I was paying for, features no longer worked correctly, and they give the stuff away for free to entice new customers. I called and told them my problem. All they would do is sell me a new cheapo reciever (I paid for my entire system with upgraded features) for $50x2, one in the living room and 1 in the bedroom, and a new satelite dish to get the programs I was currently paying for but couldn't recieve, for $75. I explained nicely how I was a customer for 8 years now and they can give 4 room systems with DVR away for free (would be around $700 for me to buy this) and wanted them to help me out. Again, all they would do is sell me new stuff.
I switched to DirecTV with a free DVR reciever and 2nd reciever for the bedroom, programming that I can actually watch, local network channels, 3 times the amount of channels I previously got, for a discounted monthly charge for the first 3 months. Also got around 20 free movie channels for 3 months free which I feverishly recorded on the way cool DVR. When I called Dish Network to cancel, they asked why? I told them and they were ready to bend over backwards to send me all the equipement I wanted free. "Too late," I told them. "You should take care of your current customers BEFORE they cancel, not when they switch away." The service is so much better. I now get free movies very often on certain DirecTV channels, free concerts, and often free movie channels on the big "pay for" channels like HBO, Showtime, Stars, etc (about 20 of them, like I said).