Getting a phone lilne

Thanks Esteruca. I've read about people not being happy with telefonica. I'm building up my list to see who is the best provider.

Estuerca - what's the problem with Iberbanda?  I have been using them for some time and by and large it works very well.  Internet download is much faster than dial up and free 24/7.

I hate the fact that it is owned by Telefónica - the worst company in the world - but there is no choice.  Is there no monopolies commission in Spain?

I'm with Max on this.  I have had Iberbanda for internet only alongside Telefonica for telephone for years, because in the early days Iberbanda's telephone was pretty rubbishy, but we had a Telefonica radio phone with which you can't have broadband.  However the Iberbanda phone has got better and better and we have now binned the Telefonica phone - no problem at all and you can keep your phone number. 

There is currently a special offer whereby you no longer pay a monthly supplement for Iberbanda's phone on top of broadband and you get something like 300 minutes per  month of calls to Spanish landlines within your rental and broadband price.  Not only that but ALL their call charges are less than Telefonica and despite the fact that they are now part of Telefonica, so far it seems that you can have a sensible conversation with them, which is something I have never been able to achieve in 8 years with the daleks at Telefonica. The one problem that we had is that although the switch over was supposed to be automatic, and therefore we should no longer have been charged line rental by Telefonica starting from the bill after the changeover, we nonetheless got one and it took a bit of sorting out.  Iberbanda were much more helpful on this than Telefonica, needless to say!

 Hi Max,

My experiences with them in CDS was not good.  For my work I help numerous families to set up Iberbanda lines were Telefonica did not give the services yet and it was a disaster. The lines were not working a lot of the time. A year after the lines have been swap to Telefonica no one has still come to the houses to collect the equipment that they provided. On top of that for no reason sometimes I get phone calls from people saying that Iberbanda has give them my number and if I can organized their contract. It is good to know that they work better in other areas but I will not used them again. If you want to have cheaper prices you can always used companies like ONO, tele 2, etc... I agree with you that telefonica is a very difficult company to deal but not the only one 

Regards

When they set up a few years ago, I think they were a one-man-and-a-dog outfit.  They seem to have improved enormously. 

At times when we lose signal, I can phone them and they know where the problem is and that there are techs working on it. 

I know a chap who used them years ago, and he used to get up early to log on to the internet because the transmitter only allowed 5 or so users at a time!!  Its much better now.

In my inland town you only have the choice of Telefónica or Iberbanda (er....Telefónica).

 Hi Max,

There is not much choice I know. I have check and the lines were changed from Iberbanda to Telefonica last march-april. It is not that long that Iberbanda were providing the service but may be they give a better service on your area. I still think that is better the  that you know...

It is with deep regret that I have to inform you that Iberbanda has been infected by the cancer called Telefónica.  It seems that the leaden hand and poisonous business practices of Telefónica have now permeated to Iberbanda.

This is a shame - I used to recommend them as an alternative to the evil Telefónica, but now they seem to be just as bad.

They have been bullying a friend of mine for monies already paid.  E-mails, faxes, phone calls are ignored.  The customer help line that was so wonderfully helpful a year or so ago can't even look at accounts on their computer system.  I have wasted hours of my time trying to sort out his problems with them, to no avail.  It is just like the old days trying to talk to someone intelligent at Telefónica.

What a disaster.

 Max, we used to use them a couple of years ago and at first they were great, even if their system wasn't always that great, their customer service was.

Their customer service started deteriorating just as we left them but I saw it happening.  They grew very fast and I don't think they were ready for such huge demand of their services!

Justin

Hi Justin

It seems such a shame to me - they could have been so good.  I can't help feeling that the malevolent hand of Telefónica who now owns them has been responsible.

What ever happened to the EC anti-monopoly rules?  Can Telefónica do whatever they want?

All it means is that in my area we have a choice of Telefónica or Telefónica.

Oh, I wasn't actually aware the Telefonica had bought them out.  That probably explains quite a lot then.  Like you say, a shame really.

Justin

I was aware that TF was a shareholder in Iberbanda because of the following statement on their literature that I picked up in December (and the translation on the iberbandainenglish website):

Why choose Iberbanda?

Telefonica, El Corte Ingles, and Grupo Prisa are the majority shareholders. Iberbanda has won public authority contracts to provide rural internet access throughout Andalucia, Catalunya, and many other areas of Spain.

So have they recently purchased outright or was I mislead when I ordered my line and had it installed last month? My installation was carried out by Servcom in Turre and they were very helpful, but then they are an agent I suppose. The first months payment has been made and it is 50% of the price I expected it to be. Plus I took my own router from PC World instead of paying for their expensive one!

Mark

Hi Mark

It all sort of works OK until you have a problem or a question (like ordering a burger without topping in MacDonalds ).

I have just been told by them that people who are waiting for a line will have to wait 3 weeks before the system sends a work chit out to the technicians.  WHY?  I order for them on the web page.  Can't the system send a chit out the same hour? 

Telefónicas customer service philosophy coming in here I think.