[Riz Parvez]

This is an interesting discussion. Obviously some folks are pretty annoyed at what the OP did, and have been pretty vocal about it. I'm surprised that there weren't dozens of "Awesome, man! I'm going to try that too!" posts afterward. Also interesting (and I haven't sifted through each post with a fine tooth comb, I'm just skimming), it seems like the OP has resisted the urge to lash back, turning this into the kind of flame war that I'd just as soon skip over.

That said, and perhaps to digress and diffuse, a few questions (and I take no side on this issue, btw. I just think it's interesting):

1. what if the OP were talking about haggling for a car?

2. What if, in order to enter this deal into the computer, the CS representative terminated his contract(s), then signed him up for a new contract, and these were the negotiated terms of the new sale? (does this change your thoughts on the car-haggling question?) In fact, is it NOT a new contract if he's now set up for an additional 2 years?

2. what if the OP were talking about getting a price match if he bought the device and the price dropped 20 days later?

3. What if it's entirely true that the CS Representative dropped this into the OP's lap? Should he have said, "No, that's too generous. I was only looking to get the same price as a new customer." Instead of taking the offer?

4. Regarding the marriage analogy:
Could it be argued that healthy and lasting marriages are in a constant state of renegotiation? (The OP is making the argument that he's in for 2 years, giving Sprint $2000+ in the process.)
Does rigid abiding to the original vows of marriage [I]contribute[I]to divorce?

I think some people are pissed about the extent of the deal he got, and the tone of the original post (which does, to be fair, have a significantly different tone than the OP's later responses). That's fine. This has been a tense but (by and large) polite debate.

John Stewart Mill would approve (of the debate, anyway.)

[Scott R]

I think some people are pissed about the extent of the deal he got, and the tone of the original post (which does, to be fair, have a significantly different tone than the OP's later responses). That's fine. This has been a tense but (by and large) polite debate.

I sense the same emotions that were common in the SERO threads.

Sprint could have called his bluff (if he was bluffing). They chose to give him a great offer, instead. Good for him. And good on Sprint!

[Merovingian]

So i guess when Pre v2 comes out or some Android goodness in less than a year you'll be doing the song and dance again....

I vote for a button the opposite of the "Thanks" button. We need to downrank some people.

I wish Sprint would actually send these people packing.

[BlaqkAudio]

So i guess when Pre v2 comes out or some Android goodness in less than a year you'll be doing the song and dance again....

I vote for a button the opposite of the "Thanks" button. We need to downrank some people.

I wish Sprint would actually send these people packing.

Did you read the thread at all? The OP already stated that he was planning on canceling his contract if he couldn't get the Pre at a reasonable price. He needed a smartphone for his job, and he could have easily paid the ETF and signed up with another carrier for less than the Pre's $550 retail price.

[quahtrader]

Did you read the thread at all? The OP already stated that he was planning on canceling his contract if he couldn't get the Pre at a reasonable price. He needed a smartphone for his job, and he could have easily paid the ETF and signed up with another carrier for less than the Pre's $550 retail price.

Too bad the thread didn't start off with that - instead, it appeared to be instruction on how to lie to Sprint to get a free Pre.

While in the end what happened makes some sense, what was posted at the start makes no sense at all and should have never been posted, IMO.

[mattbrad2]

Thanks.

Also, it's worth noting that if everyone who was going to cancel service with Sprint stayed because they received a free pre, at the very least, Sprint would make about 1300 dollars off each one over two years. Not bad.

Just to clarify - Sprint isn't actually "making" $1300 here. I see your math, but you do cost them X amount of dollars each month to use their service. This is why they only subsidize a few hundred bucks and not the full $600 for the phone. I'd bet my lunch their profit margin is around 30% (I'll go do some research on this now..) which brings your figure to about $390 over two years. Thats not a lot of money for a fortune 500 company.

[pogeypre]

Just to clarify - Sprint isn't actually "making" $1300 here. I see your math, but you do cost them X amount of dollars each month to use their service. This is why they only subsidize a few hundred bucks and not the full $600 for the phone. I'd bet my lunch their profit margin is around 30% (I'll go do some research on this now..) which brings your figure to about $390 over two years. Thats not a lot of money for a fortune 500 company.

The math is still sound. I am talking about revenue, not net profit. The $1300.00 is the gross profit for two years contract, and that's subtracting the entire value of the phone. Net profit is great, but I was talking about revenues.

[pogeypre]

Too bad the thread didn't start off with that - instead, it appeared to be instruction on how to lie to Sprint to get a free Pre.

While in the end what happened makes some sense, what was posted at the start makes no sense at all and should have never been posted, IMO.

The point of the post was to help disgruntled Sprint customers get in contact with the correct place to see if they could find a way to stay. Take it for what it is, and try not to read anything else into it. If I had posted my entire story, we might have avoided most of the debate here, and for that I apologize.

[pogeypre]

So i guess when Pre v2 comes out or some Android goodness in less than a year you'll be doing the song and dance again....

I vote for a button the opposite of the "Thanks" button. We need to downrank some people.

I wish Sprint would actually send these people packing.

Such hate. I have the phone I want on the network I want. This is not about getting every latest and greatest phone. It was about getting a phone that would do what I needed it to.

By the way, I thanked you for your post because you meant well, I think.

[mattbrad2]

The math is still sound. I am talking about revenue, not net profit. The $1300.00 is the gross profit for two years contract, and that's subtracting the entire value of the phone. Net profit is great, but I was talking about revenues.

That doesn't make sense in your argument though. Your saying Sprint is making a large amount of money off of you for you being on a two year contract and thats just not the case if they have to give you a $600 credit to stay with them.

Sprint could care less if you paid them a million dollars over two years if they just had to turn around and give a million dollars back in expenses from you using their service.

[mattbrad2]

The point of the post was to help disgruntled Sprint customers get in contact with the correct place to see if they could find a way to stay. Take it for what it is, and try not to read anything else into it. If I had posted my entire story, we might have avoided most of the debate here, and for that I apologize.

I agree. Like I said before, there is certainly a detail you have chosen to omit because for the life of me I can't see Sprint giving someone $600 just to stay a customer. I've never known of a company to do something this extreme. $100 -$200, maybe. Go and read some of the stories on the forum here of people trying to get free Airraves. A lot of people have struggled with this, and you for some reason and able to call Sprint up and them give you $600?? That doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

[hparsons]

...
and you for some reason and able to call Sprint up and them give you $600?? That doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

Make sense or no, sometimes the CSRs at Sprint do strange things like this. I think the reps are given "sign up" goals or something, and are given some latitude to reach them.

Many months back (I think it was when I got my first Tre 755p), I had read on this forum (TreoCentral) that several users had purchased one for $150 by offering to re-up their contracts. I called, and asked if I could get one for that price. I told her I hadn't really planned on buying immediately, but if I could get the same deal others reported, I would sign a new contract. The rep put me on hold, and asked me what "I thought of $200" (instead of the then current $250). I told her I thought that was a good price, but not good enough to make me sign a new contract immediately She put me on hold again, came back and said that she would get me a new 755p for $150 if I would sign a new contract on my line.

I agreed, and she asked for my CC #. I paused, and sheepishly told her that I had given it to my wife, and did not have the CC # with me. I asked for her badge #, and assured her I would call back and order the phone.

She asked me to hold for a moment, then came back with a bombshell "Mr Parsons, if you will sign new contracts for both your line and hers, we'll send you the 755p for free". I thought there would be a catch, but there was none. The phone arrived as promised, and I sold my 700 for $100. Quite a deal.

To this day, I honestly don't know exactly why she gave me the phone for free, but it was a nice experience.

[jknorr]

To the OP:

I feel for you man. All of the phones that I've had from sprint/nextel have had terrible reception in my house and none in my basement where I'm always at. This was so bad that my girlfriend and I would fight every night due to dropped calls. I had no idea about this airwave device till I seen someone post on here that I could get it for free for simply calling and complaining to sprint... I called them and explained the story just like I did to you and first they said that they'll just give me just 100 free minutes, but I never go over my minutes so that'd be pointless. 100 minutes changed to a 100 dollar credit after my phone call with the CSR dropped... After that was when they offered me the Airwave for free for 2 yrs. I told some people about this and was heckled for doing it. I see what you did here and applaud you for doing so, so that those of us who are in need of info like this, to point us in the right direction.

-Jordan

[STARGATE]

Well, seems like pogeypetey

had posted my entire story, we might have avoided most of the debate here, and for that I apologize.

Learn his lesson, that been said, he did not strongarm Sprint, he try to reason with them on something and got more than what he thought (I hate you pogeypetey, *sarcasm*). Yes he got his Pre for free, and most of us did not, oh well, that is life you know?!
I'm happy for him, and because Sprint cares about his Subs.

[SirataXero]

Will you actually cancel then if your free Pre isn't able to get good reception like many of us or will you then try for a free Airwave?

Wait... so EVERYONE here is having reception problems with their Pre?

*reconsiders switching for the Pre*

[STARGATE]

It all depends where you live, I get great reception with all my phones, but inside my house is terrible, and that goes for the Pre too.

[MaxGator]

Threatening to cancel if you "don't get a decent price on a Pre" is not by any stretch of the imagination, asking them to fix a problem. It most definitely is a strongarm tactic.

Now THAT's the funniest thing in this thread. He's strongarming Sprint?

My how this forum has changed.

[d94]

its not profit, sprint has to pay out on contracts, service for your phones, new towers ect..

[pogeypre]

its not profit, sprint has to pay out on contracts, service for your phones, new towers ect..

You are right. Sprint, like the other carriers spend a lot of money on R&D, tower upgrades, etc. I was mainly pointing out that the revenue coming in for keeping a customer outweights the free pre.

[jknorr]

It all depends where you live, I get great reception with all my phones, but inside my house is terrible, and that goes for the Pre too.

The rep that I talked to said that, depending on where you live (apartment, your own house) and the year it was built, the walls could have some kind of reception deafening type matrial in them... This is just what the rep told me though.