But Globe did it again. The excessive gprs charges that happened last January is back again which I will elaborate more. Yugatech is also a victim of these excessive charges and probably a lot more victims based on the 110 comments in his entry (read 110 comments here).

Let me give you a background of my Globe billing problems but before that here is a background about me:

1. I don’t rely on globe 3g as my internet connection. I am subscribed to 3 major ISPS: Globe Broadband (2mbps), PLDT Mydsl (1 mbps), Smart Bro and another mobile internet connection from Smart 3g. That makes me connected to 4 sources and a Globe Tattoo dongle. (Read my review of the internet providers)

2. Globe subscriber since April 1999 using the same phone number.

3. I own a macbook, HP mini and desktop other than an iPhone and another 3g enabled phone for my smart phone number

4. As a blogger and new media publisher, I don’t have time to play with my iPhone except check emails and the occasional orders of my online business when I am out of the house.

5. Usually I am at my home 3 times a week. Usage of iphone is when I don’t bring my laptop.

6. I know how to use my iPhone so it does not trigger my email program and to edit my APN when I don’t need a 3g connection.

7. This is not an attack to my friends who work at Globe. You are wonderful and doing a great job. You have tried to help me resolve my charges but the system flaw is beyond your control. I can’t keep asking you to help me out. What about the others who are having billing problems and think that 50% being waived is a good compromise. NOT.

8. I appreciate the 2 awards given to me by Globe in 2007 and 2009 but it does not mean I can’t complain. I am a customer and I have rights.

My Globe 3g nightmare billing problems

1. I got my iPhone 3g during the first week of September 2008 and my gprs usage were all below 1,000 pesos.

2. My March and April 2009 bill amounted to 14,064.35 pesos of which 9,439.76 came from gprs charges.

3. I contested the amount of 9439.76 pesos and paid for the rest of the bill.

4. I requested extraction of usage and was sent the January 11- February 10, 2009 extraction for the said billing period. See the extraction below and my notes.

I removed my cellphone number in this excel file
Globe GPRS Usage from my iPhone

You will note on January 11, I connected at 13:00 and was charged 870 minutes (14.5 hours) costing 258.68 pesos. My next connection is 1 1/2 hours later at 14:27.07 with a usage of 45 minutes which cost 13.38

This is just one example . How could I possibly be using 14.5 hours internet in a span of 1 hour and 27 minutes?

The same goes on for the improbable usage of gprs at the times allocated.

5. Globe offered to rebate 50% but that would mean paying 4,500 pesos. I refused the offer and suggested that I pay only 1,000 pesos based on my highest usage for the past 6 months. Globe agreed.

6. My GPRS bill seemed normal during the next few months

April 2009- 201.51
May 2009- 512.99
June 2009- 1012.42
July 2009- 615.48
August 2009- 605.92
September 2009-777.42
October 2009- 3,786.87 – upgraded to iphone plan 2199
November 2009-3,250.63 – only 648.16 charged
December 2009- 3,808.10 – currently contesting

7. By September 2009, I upgraded to the iPhone Plan 2199 plus DUO plan since I noticed that my total bill including text and calls amounted to 2,500 pesos a month.

This is when the Globe 3G Billing nightmare recurred. I thought I could save more with the upgrade but goodness gracious, take a look, I ended up being billed 4 times my average use.

8. Let’s just analyze my unpaid gprs charges of 3,808.10 pesos for the current billing period.

What does that mean?

It means I used my iPhone 3Gs for at least 7 to 8 hours a day, on the average. I find it impossible. Why?

8.1. Battery life for iPhone 3Gs lasts for 4 to 5 hours.

8.2. Even if I used a charger to make battery life last longer, it is just damn stupid. I’d rather use my laptop. I am 52 years old and even if I am young at heart, my eyesight cannot take prolonged use of a small electronic gadget.

8.3. I happen to have a life. I don’t stay glued to my iphone for 8 hours. DUH!

9. My story is not done yet. I told Globe that it is impossible for me to have those 3g charges and if I can have extraction of usage. I was told that it is not possible to give me an extraction, Exact words use- ” for the internet usage in your latest bill is not a regular service being offered” and instead, the customer service rep (CSR) sent me an email that totally insults my intelligence.

Good day. Thank you for bringing this to our attention.
It might help to know that when you see the icon which appears on the upper left corner of your Iphone, this indicates that there is an internet activity. In addition, you also get charged when accessing applications such as stocks, weather, Safari, Maps and the like. Also, please know that the IPhone automatically shifts from WiFi connection to another stronger network/signal which is available in the area. Moreover if your email accounts are integrated, this is also a possible cause for browsing charges. We suggest that you remove your email accounts to avoid incurring high charges.

Our default charging rate is volume – based (KB). But since you have registered to the alternative option our records show you were charged under the TIME-based scheme amounting to PHP 2747.47 in your latest bill. Please note that we have not found any charging problems nor system errors during the concerned period; be assured then that your account has been charged for usage that was traced to have originated from your sim card. We also wish to advise extraction of the logs for the internet usage in your latest bill is not a regular service being offered. We do however suggest the following additional tips to further avoid browsing charges:

1. Charging begins as soon as you open the Safari, YouTube, Stocks, Weather or other web-based applications. Remember that replaying a video means another charged transaction.
2. Clicking on the menu button ends your Internet connection to Safari, YouTube, Stocks, Weather, Instant Messenger or other web-based applications.
3. When iPhone is not in use , make sure to lock the iPhone by short pressing the sleep/wake button (keypad locking) so as to avoid unwanted keypad presses that may trigger browsing and call charges.
4. When setting up e-mail, best to set this to Manual vs. Push. If you set it on Push, it will constantly connect to the Internet causing unnecessary charging and even drain your battery’s life. Settings > Fetch New Data > Push (On/Off) & Fetch (Manually). For iPhone OS 3.1: Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars > Fetch New Data > Push (off) & Fetch (Manually)
5. Email accounts (if there’s any) should be set to OFF when not in use. Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars > Accounts (set all existing accounts to OFF).
6. Weather, Stocks, App Store and iTunes are location dependent applications. These applications also connect to the internet for updates. To turn it off: Settings > General > Location Services > OFF
7. Apps behave differently from one another, some require connection to the internet for it to work, some may need to connect to the server from time-to-time for upgrades or updates. In both cases, when you use Globe’s network, you will be charged based on your internet subscription with Globe. To turn off notification: Settings > Notifications > OFF
8. While browsing, iPhone automatically shifts to the stronger connection. If you are currently on free WiFi and the connection fluctuates, iPhone automatically shifts to GPRS, EDGE or HSDPA connection and charges start to apply.
9. When not using your iPhone’s data services, you may edit the APN (by removing a letter or misspelling) at Settings > General >Network > Cellular Data Network. When you want to access the Internet again, remember to have the correct APN inputted (for Globe Postpaid: internet.globe.com.ph | for Globe Prepaid: http.globe.com.ph)
10. Any software update and change in SIM card will restore your iPhone settings (Mail, Contacts, Calendar and Network) to default and as a result, certain applications and system updates may run again and incur charges.

You may also visit : http://site.globe.com.ph/web/guest/iphone3g/updates_and_tips?sid=51miicj8b4lc81247118103386 for more information/updates regarding the iPhone.

We hope the information shared herein helps you manage your iPhone usage. Do email us should you have further clarifications.

I have to remove my email account? Why would I do that? What’s the use of an iPhone plan if I can’t check my email. Their suggestions don’t make sense.

10. I felt that the CSR blamed my iPhone and me, the user for the high billing. Imagine, the nerve. Of course, I contested the charge and since I stupidly didn’t check my October 2009 bill, I am requesting for a refund.

11. Even if they waive the fees again, the problem may recurr again. I need assurances that it won’t happen again.

So I can whine and bitch in my blog but what use will that do?

What steps will I take?

I have 3 courses of action.

1. Exercise my consumer rights and file a complaint at the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC). Here is the complaint form.

I will only pay for actual usage but without the extraction excel file, that is impossible. Based on Republic Act No. 7925 ARTICLE VII. Sec. 20. Rights of End-Users. – The user telecommunications service shall have the following basic rights:

c) Regular, timely and accurate billing, courteous and efficient service a quality business offices and company personnel; and

There is a complaint form that you can download at the NTC site but it seems down right now.

2. Collate all other iPhone users who have similar billing problems. Please fill up the form below. Rest assured I will not use your information without your written permission.

3. Oh. I will not post my next step because I will just do it.

Enough is enough on flawed billing. It is my right to have accurate billing. I haven’t even talked about the crappy service, have I? (that’s another blog post).

It is time that Globe fix their problems and stop blaming the iPhone user or the iPhone. Apple should know about this too.

Care to share your iPhone 3g billing nightmares?

Globe 3g Iphone users with billing problems, be counted because even if charges are waived, they can reappear again just like mine.

Please fill up the form if you have billing issues with Globe

and here are related posts on Globe 3g billing horror stories

Globe Philippines Blames iPhone for Billing Problem

I’m ready to quit my iPhone by Yugatech

Is Globe having problems tracking iphone data usage properly?
Billing concern with globe and iPhone-Philmug forum

Globe Insane Internet Charges- Philmug Internet forum

Hindi ako maktulog by Chuvaness

Enlighten me by Chuvaness where her bill is 30 k

Does Globe charge for the use of wifi in the Philippines?

IPHONE3G + GLOBE users watch out!

Update on iPhone/Globe billing issues

Now when Globe informed me that I can avail of the iphone 3g through the Loyalty Rewards, my ears perked right up. I got even more interested when I found out that I will be getting my iphone 3g at more than half the retail price of Php 37,599 ($835) for the 8GB one, I grabbed the opportunity. It’s been over two weeks now since I got my elegant and user-friendly iphone.

I didn’t have much expectations for this phone except that I want my phone to be 3g capable. You know how I rely a lot on internet access for my business. That is all that counts. Fitting snugly in my hand, I got struck by its stylish looks and the use of one mechanical button, the HOME key. While the lack of a keypad can be quite disconcerting at first, I soon got used to the idea of “sliding” and “touching” the screen to interact with and use the phone. The iPhone interface is very intuitive and any technophobe can grapple with this new phone in a few days.

I didn’t know many things about the iphone. A lot ask me how does the iphone 3g work with a mommy blogger?

Can I dare say, I got “hoodwinked”?

I am just kidding, of course. The iphone is a winner in my books. Using the QWERTY keyboard was a challenge the first few days but I got the hang of it within the week. The darn auto-correction often puzzled my contacts whenever they receive my text messages. And those missed phone calls you receive from me? The touch sensitive buttons just makes it easier to call them. It has its good and bad points.

My iPhone goes a long way from merely being a phone. Directions, entertainment, surfing, news feeds, and games all wrapped into one little elegant device with unlimited potential.

1. I like the large fonts and wide screen display of 3.5 inches At my age, squinting through the Nokia E51 small fonts are hard on my eyes often causing me to have massive headaches. Squinting often might result in deep furrows on my forehead.

2. Plurking on the mobile version is a fun experience. The QWERTY keyboard makes it easier to plurk and reply to other plurkers. At first, the iphone did not recognize the word “plurk” so when I was talking about plurk, iphone auto-corrected it to Pluto which I was unable to edit because there is no edit button in the mobile version.

3. Calendar has a more organized feel to it. Being forgetful and lazy at times, I want to see the events for the day immediately without having to click another button.

4. The camera takes pretty decent photos.. At the Weekend Market at Celadon Manila , the batteries of my Nikon D40 died on me so I ended up using the iphone 3g camera. I am pleased with the photos I took.

5. I like the useful applications that I downloaded from the Apple itunes app store. With the Apple App store, the device’s capabilities are endless. Imagine, I can make my iphone do strange noises when I tap on it, find a restaurant when I shake it or pause a CD from across the room. Some of these apps are free. Others I bought at a nominal fee. I think the applications set the iphone apart from the rest of the phones or PDA. That’s what makes this iphone 3g so cool.

Let’s start with the Grocery Gadget ($2.99)

Grocery shopping is more organized. I create the fastest shopping list and not overlook anything just by using the Grocery Gadget.

I prepare a shopping list of groceries either from scratch, picking from an editable collection of most common household items (1000 items in the database), or from any previously created “repeat” shopping list.

How cool that Grocery Gadget learns the order in which I pick the items. When I shopped again the next time the items appeared in the correct sequence. I can simply travel the supermarket as I go down my list. Any items I did not buy remain in the list even after I reset it in preparation for my next shopping trip. Great tool for shopping!

Another great application is Bible Reader (free). When stress hits me, I click on the daily readings. Imagine, I can access the content that’s most meaningful to me no matter where I am. The large font size is pleasing to the eyes.

And of course Facebook moblie version (free)

Since I am due to travel outside the country in two weeks, I decided to download some of the handiest travel applications. The Flight Status ($4.99) is going to help me monitor the flights in between states. The App lets me check the status of all passenger flights around the world in three ways 1) By Flight Number 2) By Route and 3) By Airport. Neat!

And more Travel tools like AirportStatus (free). It displays a list of airports in North America with delays or closings. I also got Urbanspoon (free) which recommends restaurants in more than 50 US cities using the iPhone’s location-aware capability . It even offers reviews from newspapers, blogs and fellow users. And lots more!

Of course the best app for a blogger like me who has lots of blogs to monitor is the WordPress for iPhone. The App works with WordPress.com and self-installed WordPress 2.5.1 or higher, including WordPress 2.6 and the latest WordPress MU 2.6.

I can edit my entries, moderate comments but I don’t think I plan to blog long entries with a tiny keyboard.

Like Darren Rowse, I don’t expect the iphone to be a primary blogging device but it serves as a supporting blogging device. When out of my home office, it saves me time, allows me to be aware of events that are relevant to my blogs.

6. Neat hidden Screen Cap feature…. press Home Button first then press Sleep button. Screen will flash white. You see the screenshot of the iPhone screen I posted in here.

7. Globe 3g and even EDGE connection gives me fast internet connection. Safari downloads web pages faster than the Nokia’s web browser.

Those are just some of my favorites. I added a few games like Hangman, Sudoku, Treasure Lite, Fortune Cookie, Labyrinth just in case I get bored or when someone wants to play with my iphone.

There are a few irritating things about the iphone.

I can live with it for now by working around its limitations.

1. Battery Life sucks. Whenever I am out of the house, I normally check every hour if I have new emails or interesting plurks. My battery life is cut by 50% if I use my internet connection in just 3 hours. I end up bringing the power charger with me all the time whenever I am out of the house. It helps that I have Nokia e51 as my backup phone in case the battery dies on me.

September 13- Updating to firmware 2.1 improved battery life

2. No SMS forwarding and Group SMS. Apple probably doesn’t like SMS spammers. I really need the Group SMS because I send text reminders for meetings with my support groups. I wonder if an app will be available soon.

One more thing. Reading the Philmug iphone Forums helps me on updates and tips to maximize my iphone.

All in all, I’d say I like my iPhone 3G. No it’s not perfect, but nevertheless the iPhone 3G is a great gadget. Apple made a phone FUN, yet business capable. It’s the most innovative do-it-all gadget I’ve ever owned.

In two years’ time, this iphone will probably belong to my daughter or husband. Who knows what iphone version number will be after two years? For now, allow me to enjoy and play with my new toy and discover the wonders of mobile technology.

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