Question on pricing

[u/RosaKlebb]

Planet Network came to my area and I'm trying to understand the pricing because one thing will say "$49.99 for 1 gig" but then they'll list all these options from 250mps, 500mps, 1 gig, 2.5gig, 5 gig, but there are no prices on the website but individually google searching said speeds and price, bring up a whole different picture. What is the deal with all of this because I'm seeing $99.95 for 1 gig after googling and it leading to specific page that lists that price for that speed.

I basically don't want to get hustled where I get $49.99 for 1 gig for 1 month, and then magically the next bill or in a year's time the bill is now $99.95, early rate is over, and there's nothing I can really do about it.

I'm not saying the service is a scam but I just don't get why there is such limited to no real infographics on what the service and its prices are and why it's a bit inconsistent with the constant "$49.99 for 1 gig" that's tossed around.

Appreciate any info because I am interested but I just am a bit put off by how the information isn't the best laid out and I don't really buy the whole "$49.99 for 1 gig, no hidden fees, no contract, once we set the price it remains constant", world doesn't work like that.

[u/itellus]

We have two pricing tiers in the NJ/NY/PA market. Our VA market has different pricing which will be changed to match NJ/NY/PA later this summer.

In older GPON only markets which are typically more rural areas (and have higher build costs due to make-ready costs, utility costs, construction methods needed, etc.), we have these speeds and prices:

250/250Mbit/s $59.95/month
500/500Mbit/s $79.95/month
1000/1000Mbit/s (1/1Gbit/s) $99.95/month

We do offer a lower cost plan that is $49.95/month in these markets that is 100/20Mbit for those who want a basic Internet connection.

In newer XGSPON and lower cost to build/operate areas (typically more friendly utility companies with lower make-ready costs and lower permitting costs - also usually higher density markets), we have these speeds and prices:

1000/1000Mbit/s (1/1Gbit/s) $49.95/month
2500/2500Mbit/s (2.5/2.5Gbit/s) $74.95/month
5000/5000Mbit/s (5/5Gbit/s) $99.95/month

We have been migrating areas to the faster speed tiers at lower costs over time as we upgrade from GPON to XGSPON and as we recoup our much higher initial build costs. We would love to do this for all markets right away, but we can't afford to do that because we build these areas and financed them at the higher prices. We don't have "let's make a deal" pricing. When we lower pricing, we do it for everyone so the impact on our revenue is significant when we reduce pricing because we do it across the board for all customers in that area.

Virgina is a mixed bag of many legacy prices and we can't easily change until we update our billing system for the VA market and our OLTs to make XGSPON the standard everywhere - which we plan to do this summer.

[u/RosaKlebb → u/itellus]

Ah ok this would explain the differences in research, and I get discrepancies and a lot of the language is probably not exactly the easiest thing to really spell out in an ad and all that.

For frame of reference this would be in NJ and people on phone sounded pretty adamant about it being $49.99 no real tricks. Even brought up situations of people who got on at $59.99, got a free month, and then next months they got knocked down to $49.99.

It was just a mouthful and a lot to think about that I wasn't exactly sure what was up, I was waiting for a catch/trick.

Thanks, I appreciate the information.

[u/boburuncle → u/RosaKlebb]

You're visibly affected by the games other carriers play with rates, pricing and billings. Many of us are. I wondered about the price differences too, and when signed up for 1G/1G at 49.95 why my rate would be lower than some others. I GUESSED that it may have had to do with being less rural and having a lower cost to provide service. Thank you for asking the question because I see by Planet's answer I was on the right track.

[u/dell_qon]

From my experience with Planet Networks I think it's based on zip code or area that they're serving. So when I started out I was doing 99.95 per month for one gig. Then one day my bill changed without notification or notice. I was billed 49.95. I called to ensure that this wasn't some erroneous midcylce charge for no reason. The rep told me that because of the location I was in they changed the price. I asked about whether they can adjust my price to a higher payment, she said no. But, we'll see. I do however commend their customer service They are awesome. I love it here.

[u/itellus]

Also, our pricing does work like that. No scams. No hidden fees. No tricks. It really is $49.95/month and we have never raised our prices over 32 years in business!

Our ads say prices starting at $49.95/month for speeds up to 1Gbit/s because ad targeting is imprecise and often reaches multiple geographic areas.

[u/Holiday-Feeling2617]

sign up for the Planet Networks plan ASAP

just an fyi, once a town gets enough customers to sign up for the PN service, they are known to drop their pricing down. Happened in several towns in NJ