Outsmarting Smart

Okay.

I have two cellphones like probably most of you. One is for Smart, which I use most of the time, and one is for Globe because I have friends subscribed solely to Globe and they don’t respond that much if I use Smart when texting them. I don’t subscribe to Sun kasi wala naman signal ang Sun dito sa bukid.



Way back in 2001, I was a loyal subscriber of Globe. It lasted for three years but when my boss switched to Smart, nakisabay na rin ako. Nung ma-uso ang mobile chatting sa Globe, I bought another phone to avail of the free chat promo. Enjoy kasi ang mobile chatting and doon ko nakilala ang karamihan sa mga friends ko all over the country. If you are familiar with MyChat or The Park, I used to chat there. In fact, I was one of the moderators/rangers of the said chat sites.

Anyway, back to the topic. Nalihis na naman ako ng landas.

My friend Unique was calling me kanina and when I answered the call, he was laughing because I have a ringback tune daw to the tune of Martin Nievera's version of “Give Love on Christmas Day”. Siyempre nagtaka ako because I don’t subscribe to ringback tunes. Pang-jologs lang yan. Hahaha! Charing.

Do you know how much these mobile providers charge for a ringback tune? I think around P15 to P30 depending on the song if it is an old one or the ones in promos or the popular ones like for example, the songs featured on the New Moon soundtrack.

There’s nothing wrong with having a ringback tune but my point is, hindi naman ako nag-subscribe noh and they might've charged me for something that I did not avail. Punyeta!

I called Smart’s customer care hotline and fortunately I got in agad in my first attempt. Most of the time when I try to call the customer care hotline using my prepaid sim, hindi sinasagot ang tawag, that's why I have to use the company’s line which is on Plan P5000 para mabilis sagutin ang anumang katanungan ko. Oo, mabilis silang sumagot kapag nasa plan na expensive ang linya mo.

The operator answered in Bisaya which surprised me. So I told her about my concern and she asked me to hold because she’ll check daw my problem. I waited for 5 minutes and when she got back this is how our conversation went:

Her: Ma’am, you were browsing through your phone today and it charged you P90 for internet browsing.

Me: So? Ano ang connection nun sa problema ko? I'm asking why do I have a ringback tune when hindi naman ako nag-subscribe ng ringback, not about how much I spent today for internet browsing. Ano ang nangyari?

Her: Ummm.. Let me check again ma’am. Please hold.

After a few minutes…

Her: Ma’am, thank you for wating. About your concern, please type the word CHECK and send to 265, you will receive a text message and just follow the instructions to cancel your subscription.

Me: Okay, thanks.

Her: May mga katanungan pa po ba kayo ma’am.

Me: Wala na.

Her: Daghang salamat and happy holidays po.

Me: Whatever.

She’s probably thinking, bruhang bakla ang nakausap niya. Hahaha!

So, I immediately typed CHECK and sent it to 265. Thirty minutes na ang lumipas and wala pa rin akong SMS na natanggap galing sa impyerno so I called again.

I told this female operator about my concern and she quickly knew what happened to me.

This is her explanation. Apparently, if you make a Pasaload transaction (which I did), you'll receive a free ringback tune that is good for 5 days. If you like it and want it to stay, pabayaan niyo lang daw but you'll be deducted na this time for a fee because you are now availing of the said promo. But if you don't like it (like I do) you must follow this simple instruction.

Type CHECK and send it to 2728, not 265 like the first operator told me. Gaga.

You'll receive an SMS informing you of what songs are in your Jukebox. To delete it, text DEL [keyword of the song] and send it to 2728. If you don't want all the songs in your Jukebox, text STOP ALL and send it to 2728. I did the latter.

Problem solved for now.

Samakatuwid, kung pinabayaan ko lang pala ang lecheng ringback na 'to in 5 days, chances are I'll be charged for something that I did unknowingly just because I did pasaload a friend? Yun ang pagkakaintindi ko ha, because why do I have to bother cancelling or deleting the said ringback tune if mawawala din yun eventually?

Itong Smart talaga, masyadong wa-is!

If someone from Smart is reading this post, please enlighten me.




Smart logo taken from: pcworld.com.ph