Videowebgate Blog

This is a video presenting my first photographs book “Drawing on Walls” the book is available for purchase for 5 euro (download version) or 11 euro for a shipping a cd:

If you had never considered joining the miserable service of Virgin Mobile then here is a reason why you did right. If you are considering it or already did, here is why you have to run away fast.

Its true that cellular companies never bothered to provide a normal customer service or technical support. But Virgin Mobile is the worst ever, it’s either total incompetency or deliberate horrible service. My story is even worse, for more then a month I am paying Virgin for something their either doesn’t have (and sold it anyway) or they simply have no idea how to provide it.

I joined virgin in May 2009, in the 24^th of June Virgin released a new service and I upgraded my account. Officially I have 2 hours of voice communication SMS for 1 cent a message and the jewel in the crown Internet unlimited. For me this account is perfect as I am deaf and voice communication I use only in cases of emergency but data communication i need desperately.

In July 1^st the account started rolling, in July 2^nd I discovered that I lost half the voice communication I was allowed, which means that the “Unlimited Internet” is actually very limited and I am paying for it.

I went to Virgin store in Marseille to complain. The salesman Marko was horrified and immediately contacted the technical support for me (after all I cannot do this I am deaf). They said its a technical problem and they will solve it within few days.

Its been more then 5 weeks and tens of telephone calls (with the great help of Marko that unfortunately is only a salesman) and I still pay for my free Internet. Virgin is sending my problem between the department and nothing is done. I complained to virgin by e-mail and they keep telling me to be patient and how embarrassed they are. I refuse to pity them this issue is a single command in their billing program: “if account = x then Internet connection rate = 0”.

However I know that there are many accounts that work then its only required to check which of the parameters of the an account that works, is different then my account. And in the worst case they can close my account and re-open it without errors. Somehow Virgin Mobile refuse to do so.

As Virgin is an English company I tried to find a contact for my complain there. Nothing ! Yes they do ask me what my opinion about their new website (I am being asked to help them but there is no place for me to contact if i need their help !!) and of course there is a lot about Richard Branson but again no contact after all he is too busy with his public relation tricks and trips to make sure his own company will work properly.

What bothers me is that I know for sure that in the end I will be screwed, I cannot close the line as I have obligation for 12 months (I refuse to make it longer) and I cannot close the account without going to court.

As far as I know it is illegal to sell something you don’t have and it’s criminal to sell a product other then the one you purchased. Do you want to be tied in an agreement with such a company ? I don’t think so !

Chapter 2

If you think that the fact i have not written anything in the past week was because things were solved with Virgin Mobile, the you have a big mistake, its just getting more complicated more interesting and extremely more stupid.

After a month and a half I was fed up from not having an internet access as i was promised, and ask my friend, a respected journalist to contact Virgin. As a good journalist she didn’t go to the support or the client service she contacted to the press office telling them she is making a story about it. What a surprise it took two hours (2 hours !!) to fix what they failed for a month and a half.

So I finally had unlimited access, for exactly a week and a half !!

One day i tried to access the Internet, using the phone’s browser and got a page by Orange saying “you don’t have enough credit to perform this operation”. Since when an “Unlimited” account need credit ?

I e-mailed the support and they answered that i am not the only one that have this problem and their technical team is working very hard to find the solution (the same technical team that works a month and a half to find the solution on the last problem).

In the past week i kept receiving mails from them “sorry we are still working on the problem” and an hour ago i got the final email which is the craziest answer i have ever received from anyone:

—

Unfortunately, our technical services did not fix the incident you are facing on your internet access. Best solution is to subscribe a brand new line as this will be quick and efficient.  As soon as you get this new Virgin Mobile line, we would stop your current one without any charge by a simple call. One of our customer service representative will be glad to have you at any time from Monday to Saturday between 9AM to 8PM.   If this solution does solve your problem, just let us know.  ---

You see, they want me to get another line !! and that means to start my obligation to their lousy service from the beginning ! And they are not even sure that the problem will be solved !

Their hilarious technical team cannot even figure out what any kid would, Orange (their provider) does not accept Virgin Mobiles account on protocol HTTP (all the rest work).

And their solution is to replace the line get a new number, sure they will not pay for the new business cards or changing all the websites information or letting your friends and family know what the new number is.

I have never in my whole life seen such an incompetency

If you had never considered joining the miserable service of Virgin Mobile then here is a reason why you did right. If you are considering it or already did, here is why you have to run away fast.

Its true that cellular companies never bothered to provide a normal customer service or technical support. But Virgin Mobile is the worst ever, it’s either total incompetency or deliberate horrible service. My story is even worse, for more then a month I am paying Virgin for something their either doesn’t have (and sold it anyway) or they simply have no idea how to provide it.

I joined virgin in May 2009, in the 24^th of June Virgin released a new service and I upgraded my account. Officially I have 2 hours of voice communication SMS for 1 cent a message and the jewel in the crown Internet unlimited. For me this account is perfect as I am deaf and voice communication I use only in cases of emergency but data communication i need desperately.

In July 1^st the account started rolling, in July 2^nd I discovered that I lost half the voice communication I was allowed, which means that the “Unlimited Internet” is actually very limited and I am paying for it.

I went to Virgin store in Marseille to complain. The salesman Marko was horrified and immediately contacted the technical support for me (after all I cannot do this I am deaf). They said its a technical problem and they will solve it within few days.

Its been more then 5 weeks and tens of telephone calls (with the great help of Marko that unfortunately is only a salesman) and I still pay for my free Internet. Virgin is sending my problem between the department and nothing is done. I complained to virgin by e-mail and they keep telling me to be patient and how embarrassed they are. I refuse to pity them this issue is a single command in their billing program: “if account = x then Internet connection rate = 0”.

However I know that there are many accounts that work then its only required to check which of the parameters of the an account that works, is different then my account. And in the worst case they can close my account and re-open it without errors. Somehow Virgin Mobile refuse to do so.

As Virgin is an English company I tried to find a contact for my complain there. Nothing ! Yes they do ask me what my opinion about their new website (I am being asked to help them but there is no place for me to contact if i need their help !!) and of course there is a lot about Richard Branson but again no contact after all he is too busy with his public relation tricks and trips to make sure his own company will work properly.

What bothers me is that I know for sure that in the end I will be screwed, I cannot close the line as I have obligation for 12 months (I refuse to make it longer) and I cannot close the account without going to court.

As far as I know it is illegal to sell something you don’t have and it’s criminal to sell a product other then the one you purchased. Do you want to be tied in an agreement with such a company ? I don’t think so !