A couple of weeks ago, I checked on a commotion outside the house and discovered it was the Globe Telecom people installing broadband service in our subdivision. They were accepting applications right there and then and I said, “Why not?” I already have PLDT MyDSL and SmartBro but since there is no such thing as a hundred per cent uptime, I can’t go wrong with a third broadband provider. I let the Globe people in, I filled up the application forms, gave them my ID to be photocopied, they came back less then an hour later to return my ID and the application process was complete. I was promised that landline and broadband service would be installed within two to three days. Well, it was more like two to three weeks.
Anyway, after being cooped in the house, unable to leave not knowing when the Globe tech people would arrive to do the installation, they finally came just as the sun was setting on a Sunday afternoon. They asked where I wanted the phone, they laid out the cables and, about an hour later, my new landline and broadband internet connection were up. I told the installer to leave with me my username and password. He handed me a piece of paper with a username and a receipt.
Eighteen hours later, the broadband service was dead. Having been furnished with the hotline, I tried to contact Globe’s customer service but only got a busy signal. Taking a chance, I used my cell phone (on a Smart account) to call the Globe Hotline. The call went through.
You can imagine how pissed I was at that point. A newly installed phone and modem that were really nothing more than added clutter on my desk. I was angry and frustrated and the customer service representative at the other end of the line got the brunt of it. To her credit, she persevered to offer the best assistance she could. In fact, and this is something I never experienced with PLDT’s customer service, she was actually able to walk me through the troubleshooting process. Want to know what went wrong?
The people who installed the bundled landline and broadband service did not save the settings in the modem. When I turned off the computer and the modem a few hours after they had left, the settings were lost. Shouldn’t have been a problem because I can work my way around modems. But they gave me the wrong username and no password. And I kept the handwritten note they gave me, with the wrong username. You know, evidence.
So, the girl, the customer service representative, despite the fact that I was far from calm and amiable, helped me out. And, presto! I was back online. I apologized to her for my not so very polite tone and thanked her profusely. Less than two days later, the broadband service went dead and the landline was dead too.
Because I already knew that a Smart mobile phone could easily contact the Globe Hotline, I used my cell phone once more. I got a lot of apologies and was assured that my concern would be addressed within five business days. Five business days? If Globe were my only broadband provider, I would be out of business in five business days. What about my bill, I asked. I wasn’t going to pay for the days when there was no service. There was an auto-debit system, I was told. Well, we’ll see about that when the bill arrives, won’t we?
Anyway, that was Wednesday last week. By Tuesday morning, the landline and broadband internet were back. Yeah, right, five business days and they really stretched those five days. The problem is, four hours later, the broadband connection was hiccupping. An hour after that, it was gasping for breath. Another hour and it was dead. So was the landline. They are still dead as I write this column.
Between PLDT MyDSL, SmartBro and Globe, the only one that has never given my grief is SmartBro. Granted, it is the slowest of the three. But rain or shine, and even in the worst weather, service is uninterrupted. In fact, service is so stable I never had a reason to try and call SmartBro’s customer service.
PLDT MyDSL? After so much grief in the past, it’s stable and it’s fast. It might have something to do with the fact that we moved to another part of suburbia. But I really think it has more to do with knowing the people in the branch office. And that’s an invaluable tip I am giving you.
If you’re a PLDT MyDSL subscriber and you’re having shit with the service, forget calling 171 and 172. PLDT’s customer service sucks. The thing to do is to go directly to the branch office, talk to whoever is in charge and the process of repair is halfway done. I tell you, it’s your passport to a nightmare-free PLDT service.
Unlike customer service representatives (yes, those outsourced call center services) who are really little more than automated answering machines, when you talk to people who know the conditions in your area, including the location of every post and every length of cable, there is real communication and you get real response.
I don’t know who the people in your PLDT branch office are but here in Antipolo, I have to thank Mr. Reynaldo Gaspar and his team. They are fast, they are efficient and they’re super nice. Sige na nga, gwapo na rin. Thanks too to the ladies who man the counters at the Antipolo Circumferential Road Branch office. With people like them, who needs sucky 171 and 172?
You’re so right, Atty. Connie, customer services suck. As a matter of fact i dare say 95% of so-called customer services suck. The reps who supposedly are there to help dont even know at times what they’re talking about. Likewise, companies who hire call centers to represent them are doing their clients a huge disservice by allowing morons to speak on their behalf. Shouldnt these people be trained thoroughly and taught how to speak well before they’re let loose on us? A call center and/or customer service in this country is an oxymoron. But of course, i gotta admit, there are some very good exceptions. Oh and thanks for the tip. More power.
Hahaha! That’s the nice thing when you have satisfied costomers. Libre plug-in sa provider at super ang recomendation sa personnel.
Michael, most times, customer service is lip service. And this generation of outsourced customer service is really killing genuine customer service. The companies cut costs and we customers are left grappling with the inefficiency of the customer service reps.
BlogusVox, o di ba? When the service is good, say so. When it sucks, say so too. It’s just fair. At after writing about four columns about sucky PLDT, at long last, I’m getting good service.
I had experienced a similar nightmare from PLDT MyDSL. It took them 3 months to install the DSL despite countless calls to their customer service hotline. When they finally installed it, they charged me 3 months of internet service which I was not able to use. I had to go to their branch to protest it. Geez! Sobrang hassle!
why does everybody have problems with pldt mydsl? maybe i’m just fortunate, in the past half a year that i’ve had mydsl installed, i’ve only had as much as about 2 downtimes. lol
hi miss connie! I also had a problem with PLDT myDSL when we were still living in Quezon City, the people at their branch office in Cubao were rude; but, when we transferred to Taguig, it was a different story. The personnel at their Makati branch were very polite and efficient. Baka may effect din ang location sa attitude.
globe broadband really sucks..we tried the prepaid globe visibility and we we’re only able to connect for 1 hour…after that, kapfft na..buti na lng we were able to return it and it was just prepaid. anyway, we had mydsl installed instead, which was better, and so far, service has beem good (knock on wood..)
Palagay ko ang problema dito ay IKAW! What’s all this redundancy you seem to be having? Ano, militar ka ba? If I am not mistaken, there is only one provider which these competing companies want to pretend to the consuming public that they are the one. Eto ka covering the bases- PLDT, SmartBro at Globe. From the looks of it, stick with PLDT at padala mo na lang sa akien yung excess money na gusto mong waldasin. HAHAHAHAHA
By the way, I did order a copy of your cookbook yesterday. It looks like you didn’t skimp on the publication of the book. That’s good! I am now waiting for it’s delivery. I’m told it would take between 3 to 5 business days. When I’d get it in my hands, I will test how thoughtfull you were at assisting someone like me at preparing a decent meal. I can’t wait to do the laing recipe.
Yawn @ Tom. You’re getting too predictable and boring, little man. I don’t mind the irreverent comments pero ‘yang ganyang kabastusan, not amusing.
Had a bad experience with Globe broadband as well. My Manila roommate and I have Globe wireless broadband in our apartment and boy did it take long for them to install it. And they never come on the date and time that they said they’re coming for repairs. And I dunno, maybe because it’s wireless, our signal is very much under the mercy of atmospheric conditions. But yeah, they’ve adjusted our bill and ended up paying for just about 200 bucks the other month (perhaps taking into account the looong activation time of our account and the days when we had no signal).
Problem with these companies, instead of spending money to improve their service, they pay millions to endorsers like Sharon Cuneta to entice more customers they can’t satisfy.
You’re beginning to sound like the McCain campaign- Attack! Attack! HAHAHAHA Look, if you want to dialogue with the world talas-talasan mo. How did you want me to react to your column? If all three providers went down when you included a third, I could see your disappointment. But if it didn’t, where’s the problem?
Hi Connie,
Same experience with Globe. We applied for a broadband internet in July 2007, it wasn’t installed till now. And guess what, we’ve been receiving their billing continuously. Napagod na ako katatawag sa kanila, they keep on saying that they will install and yet none. Pinacancel ko na yung line but still may dumarating pa ring billing. Haay!!! iam so so so pissed off na. GLOBE REALLY SUCKS!!!
BTW, people like TOM should be the one that must be attacKed.. I think he’s SICK, POOR MAN, REALLY SICK…nakakairita just reading his posts….
Jo, pagpasensiyahan na lang si Tom. Matanda na kasi, walang magawa at bored sa buhay. He thinks he has an obligation to respond to everything. So even when he has nothing of substance to say, he still talks. I think his caretaker forgets to give him his medication regularly.
I find the customer service bad not only with phone companies, but in general. Don’t businesses realize they are killing the goose?
Crazy, isn’t it? They spend millions on endorsers when their best and most effective endorsers are satisfied customers — libre pa!
so sorry to read about your net troubles ms.connie. if you’re looking for a really good net provider i recommend bell telecom’s cable connection. consistently mabilis siya and the 24-hour customer sevice is really good. they also have back up dial up if may service interruption which happens very rarely din naman. medyo costly lang at round 2500 per month but if net dependent ang work mo, worth it talaga.
I don’t think we have Bell telecom in Antipolo, Angela.
But thanks for the tip. When it becomes available — if it ever becomes available in my lifetime (ah, suburbia!) — I’ll remember the name. 
same experience with Globe Broadband. I had it first installed when I moved in last April then after 2 months it went dead. Since calling the customer services wasn’t really helpful, they asked me to go to the nearest Globe office to file my request of service termination. First I went to Globe office in Robisons MetroEast then I was advised that they don’t process requests for termination, sa Marikina Bluewave daw, so off I went there. Pagdating don, ang haba ng pila, frustrating talaga – time consuming just to have my line terminated.
So now I switched to Smart Bro, Im satisfied with the service, so far. And with Globe, they haven’t picked up the modem and landline yet since I had it terminated, now its sitting in my storage accumulating dust. Bahala na sila whether they still want to get it or not.
I should asked you first pala (Ramon’s my neighbor hehehe). Josme, I call them every few days because every few days there’s a problem. If it’s not the phone going dead, it’s the DSL. Sometimes, both. If they bill me for all the days when service was dead, I’m going to raise hell. Hay, naku.
Your bill will be adjusted accordingly so I advise you keep a record of the days that your landline and or modem are dead. The hassle of keeping such record.
But if you really are frustrated with their service, you might as well have it terminated immediately before they loose your patience. Customer reps will always say the same line of apologies. Once I asked for the simplest request – which was to get the number of the nearest Globe office to ask for the process of having my line cut when the rep said “Sorry sir, we don’t keep record of their numbers.” What????? to my dismay. Fine. Then I consulted PLDT directory for the number of the office then I thought of course they won’t be listed there because PLDT and Globe are competitors. Then I checked on the Globe website to see a list of branch contact numbers – None! I was already exhausted with their hotline and I needed someone from the office to fix it immediately. Unfortunately for us living in uptown Antipolo where there is no Globe office around, we had to go to either Robinson’s Cainta or Bluewave Marikina just to have someone talk with us in person.
I might as well instruct the guard not to let in Globe contractors from entering the village when service is this terrible. I think some of our neighbors are using Globe but only a handful, most I think are using Smart Bro.
Oh well, sana maayos na. I have a friend from Globe and I asked him if he could recommend to his superiors about putting up an office here in uptown Antipolo for customers like us. Sa dami ng services nila (landline, mobile, broadband) its about time they set up an office here. Sana matuloy.
Re “keep a record of the days that your landline and or modem are dead.”
The article above was published as a column in Manila Standard Today. O, public record of my log of Globe’s now you see it now you don’t service. If the terrible service persists, eh di another column. Aba, people are entitled to know. How many others like me will get enticed to subscribe? People might as well know what they’re in for.
You know, as far as I remember, when we moved to Antipolo in 2001, there was a Globe office in that building on the intersection of ML Quezon Ave. and Circumferential Road. Yung giniba ni Sumulong yung harap where an old old tree was uprooted to create a through lane for those turning left. Tapos nawala. The nearest one daw is in Marikina. Wow, if I’m obliged to go there to complain, I doubt if they’ll debit the cost of gasoline from my bill.
Yes it is in Bluewave Marikina and line is soooo long, baka abutin kayo ng Pasko doon.
Hay, naku, walong taon akong pumipila sa enrollment sa UP, graduate na ‘ko sa pila. If the service stays persistently bad, I’ll make them eat the two-year lock-in clause in the subscription.
hi there,,,may problem din ako,yung landline po namin whch they say can txt other globe mobiles, it says sending was completed but messages were never received,maganda sana kasi pang emergency right?pero bakit ayaw mareceive..what can i do po kaya?tnx
Complain. Not to the customer service but to the nearest branch office.
I’d like to thank you guys for all your posts. I’m also a resident in Antipolo and we’re planning to get a decent broadband connection. My first choice is PLDT myDSL para less hassle and super plugged na efficient ang circumferential branch dito. After reading some posts, naturn off ako sa Globe Broadband and Smartbro.
I’m wondering if any of you guys have subscribed to Sun Wireless Broadband here in Antipolo? (may sun ba dito?) Is it good?
Please, my pc modem’s about to give up plus with Pldt vibe, i only get an average of 19 kbps, yep, really sucks.
Sun cellular signal is spotty enough here as it is.
Hi!
I happened upon this discussion while searching for Globe’s online customer service resource (I still haven’t found one, btw). I should be working now, but since I don’t have any internet at home, this is my only chance. I can’t begin to tell you how disillusioned I am at reading these comments. I think my face is going to implode.
Last Sunday, Globe installed a broadband connection in my new home in Antipolo, and the next morning found my modem unconscious and my dial tone uncooperative. Later that evening, I managed to get in a couple of hours of internet use. But hey, it’s only Tuesday morning, and my home doesn’t have a viable internet connection yet again. That’s two service interruptions in as many days.
I called Globe’s customer service hotline only to be thanked for being patient as they worked towards “network restoration”. The automated lady also thanked other subscribers from Makati, Mandaluyong, Quezon City, and Pampanga. That’s a lot of thank you’s going around.
Am I doomed to this kind of service from Globe forever? Should I get out now while I still can?
Jason, I have a friend who demanded on getting out of the 2-year lock in period because of the same problems. You might really want to consider it.
Hello po,
I applied for GLOBE Wireless Broadband 1Mbps (daw) just this Friday. I am also located in Antipolo, near Masinag. They have to call me within that day to follow up if they have a good signal in our location. So they called me up at around 5:30pm, and the rep told me they will be using 3G signal daw, and the top speed will only be 512kbps. Parang napaisip ako kasi sayang babayaran ko, P995 din un and supposedly for 1Mbps speed. Sabi ko yung officemate ko (he is using Wi-Max signal ata)which is located near Cherry’s eh nakakakuha ng 1Mbps na speed at di naman kalayuan sa location namin, sabi nila they will be getting the 3G signal from Mambugan mas malapit daw kasi yun sa amin. Once a technician arrives, they can check naman daw if the connection for the Wi-Max is better or the 3G. I am planning to continue the installation, sana lang maging maayos ang lahat.. By reading these posts, parang kelangn ata maging prepared ka sa sakit ng ulo na ibibigay sayo.. hehehe! Anyone using Globe sa may Masinag area? Mostly po ata kasi yung sa upper area ng Antipolo.
Thanks in advance.