Fido bait and switch - where can I go with this?

[fox]

Fido has done a bait and switch on the LG GPad III 8.0 tablet. If you go here, you'll see an offer to buy the pad for $49 with a 2-year $15/month tablet activation that give you 3 gb data/month. No mention whatsoever of having to have an existing phone plan, but that's what they say you have to have to get this plan. Tried the live chat and the guy kept directing me to another page which doesn't really relate to this one. I think they should be panned for this. What media would you suggest using to get out the message?

[Jason]

I've never worked in communications so not really sure, perhaps CBC Marketplace?

http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/contactus/

[ssfc72]

Yes, CBC Marketplace might be a good choice, if you are wanting to buy the tablet.

I believe what Fido is doing is probably false advertising and not "bait and switch selling".  If you were going to contact Marketplace

The bait and switch practice, as  defined by the Canada Competition Bureau, is when the store doesn't have the advertised item and tries to sell you a different item at a higher price.
http://www.competitionbureau.gc.ca/eic/site/cb-bc.nsf/eng/03798.html

[fox]

Oops, you're right, Bill! I'll look into Marketplace, but I don't think this one is sexy enough for them. The irony is that I'm not even sure I would have bought this had it been as advertised. It would be a good deal - about $450 for a good tablet with two years of 3 GB/month of data, but I don't really need data on a tablet. Still, I'm sure I would use it if I had it. The extra cost vs buying outright would be about $200, so less than $10/month for the data.

[Jason]

I noticed the link no longer says $49 down and $15/month over 2 years. It now says $0 down with Easy Pay but no amount is listed. I decided to do the Live Chat to ask about. The log of my chat is below but it's basically $25 a month (not inc taxes)  which includes the Easy Pay and 2 GB of data per month but you also need to have a mobile account with them. Scanning their website it looks like the cheapest mobile plan is $25/month (just voice and texts) assuming you bring your own phone over.  So the total minimum would be $50 a month plus taxes.

You can get a phone for $7 per month additional charge if you get a phone that costs less $300 like the LG G4.

3:18 PM  Connecting...
3:18 PM  Connected. A Fido representative will be with you shortly.
3:18 PM  Support session established with Yannick.
3:19 PM     Yannick:
Fido LiveANSWERSâ,,¢
Hey Jason! I’m Yannick. Nice to meet you! May I please have your full name and either your Fido phone number or account number? I’ll send you a secure form to ID you afterwards. Thanks!
3:19 PM     Jason Wallwork:
Hi Yannick. I'm not a Fido customer but my name is Jason Wallwork.
3:20 PM     Yannick:
Okay, to get a tablet with us you must have at least one active mobile phone line. I'll send you the details.
3:20 PM     Yannick:
We currently offer three tablets: the LG G Pad III, the iPad Mini 4 and the Alcatel Pop 7 LTE. You can decide to pay for the one of your choice all at once, or you can pay for it through Easy Pay. Here’s how it’d work:

- LG G Pad III: This tablet is $240 + taxes. The Easy Pay amount would be $10/month for 24 months, with no down payment or interest. The taxes would be charged on your next bill.
- iPad Mini 4 32 GB: This tablet is $439 + taxes. The Easy Pay amount would be $18.29/month for 24 months, with no down payment or interest. The taxes would be charged on your next bill.
- iPad Mini 4 128 GB: This tablet is $569 + taxes. The Easy Pay amount would be $23.71/month for 24 months, with no down payment or interest. The taxes would be charged on your next bill.
- Alcatel Pop 7 LTE: This tablet is $150 + taxes. The Easy Pay amount would be $6.25/month for 24 months, with no down payment or interest. The taxes would be charged on your next bill.

A great thing about Easy Pay is that the tablet's balance can be paid off at any time during the 24 months which would reduce your monthly Easy Pay payments!

Also, we currently have a great promotional plan! The price is usually of $15 per month for 2 GB, $10/GB afterwards, but we’re adding in an extra GB, total of 3 GB, at no cost!

To clarify, you’d be charged $15 + taxes per month for 3 GB or less, and if you go over, the plan will adjust to your usage with a rate of $10 + taxes/GB extra. To this amount, you’d add your Easy Pay charge and that’s all you'd have to pay!
3:21 PM     Jason Wallwork:
Okay, cool. Thanks.
3:22 PM     Jason Wallwork:
Is there a way I can save this chat or do I need to copy and paste?
3:22 PM     Yannick:
You would need to copy the text from the chat window and paste it in a Word soc on your computer.
3:22 PM     Jason Wallwork:
Okay, got it. Thanks for your help, Yannick.
3:23 PM     Yannick:
Have an awesome day!

[fox]

Neat that you followed up on that, Jason, but I think you ended up on a different page than I did. Here is the link to the page at question, which I got to directly by googling fido & LG GPad III & deal: fido & LG GPad III & deal. No mention of having to have a phone account with them. So like you, I saved the dialogue and here it is. You'll find that I was rather curt with the representative; I wanted to get them to acknowledge that they made a mistake, and that they should therefore offer me what they advertised. I put red text to emphasize the main points.

7:10 PM  Connecting...
7:10 PM  Connected. A Fido representative will be with you shortly.
7:10 PM  Support session established with Michael.
7:10 PM 
Michael:
Fido LiveANSWERSâ,,¢
Hey! I’m Michael. Nice to meet you! May I please have your full name and either your Fido phone number or account number? Thanks!
7:11 PM 
Michael:
Oh I see in your question you do not have a Fido account, is that correct?
7:12 PM 
Michael:
Michael Fox and yes, I have no Fido account.
7:13 PM 
Michael:
Hey Michael! For the data only line on a tablet you would have to have a postpaid phone line on an existing account before you would be eligible for the promotion.
7:15 PM 
Michael:
OK, that wasn't clear from your site which states: "$0 down with easy pay with Easy Pay® 1 or $49 with a 3GB $15/mo 2 year tablet plan." No mention there of having to have any other plan.
7:16 PM 
Michael:
Would you be able to provide me with a link to this?
7:18 PM 
Michael:
I would because if you are correct, it is misleading. The footnote "1" deals with download speed, not another plan. Here is the link: http://www.fido.ca/consumer/mobile/device-list/lggpad3
7:19 PM 
Michael:
I see. I do not believe there is a way to order it unless you're on your Fido.ca account.
7:20 PM 
Michael:
But I agree, it should be on there in the full details.
7:21 PM 
Michael:
Back to my point - ad is misleading as it states nothing about an account. Based on that ad, I should be able to go to a Fido store, buy the pad for $49 and get a 2 year TABLET contract for the data at $15/month. That's what it states!
7:23 PM 
Michael:
I definitely understand your frustration but the plan is not eligible on a new account unless there is a phone line on it first. That is why you're not able to order it unless you're logged into your account first. The store would provide you with the same information. If you would like there is a section to voice a concern on the website, I can provide you with the link if you would like to pass this concern on.
7:26 PM 
Michael:
Thanks, but I believe it would be more effect to post about this on social media. This is a form of bait and switch, and I'm surprised that Fido would engage in this.
7:26 PM 
Michael:
I regret you feel this way. I would like to pass this chat on so you're able to speak with my supervisor.
7:27 PM 
Michael:
Please do. Will I be speaking to your supervisor now?
7:27 PM 
Michael:
I am speaking with them, now. One moment please.
7:31 PM 
Michael:
When you first go to the "Get a tablet too" page, you can see at the bottom in full details that it states "3. Available to Fido postpaid customers with wireless plan (voice only, data only, Fido Home Phone and prepaid plans not eligible)."
7:31 PM 
Michael:
http://www.fido.ca/consumer/tablets
7:34 PM 
Michael:
You haven’t replied in a while, still there?
7:35 PM 
Michael:
I see no "Get a tablet too" on this page. Since I'm on a page about getting a tablet, why would I look for something called "Get a tablet too". Furthermore, when I click on that tab, it takes me back to the page I started on.
7:36 PM 
Michael:
When you go to "Phones and Devices" there is a tab that says "Tablets" and it would be at the bottom of the page under See full details
7:36 PM 
Michael:
Further again, the proviso applies to easy pay, not the $50 deal!
7:37 PM 
Michael:
You would require an existing account before we can add a tablet line. I would be more than happy to help you create an account with a phone line and the tablet if you would like.
7:41 PM 
Michael:
There is no such "phones and devices" tab on the page I started with. This doesn't change my assessment of the situation. I thank you for looking into the situation, but since neither you nor your supervisor is willing to acknowledge that I am correct, I'll depart and handle the problem the way I think is most effective.
7:43 PM 
Michael:
Once you click "Mobile" it will take you to a new page and there will be a gray bar under "Mobile" and the first tab will say "Phones & Devices"
7:46 PM 
Michael:
Why would I click "mobile"? I am already on the page that has what I'm interested in. This is getting circular. Unless I hear something more rational from you, in the next reply, I'll stop wasting your time and mine.
7:47 PM 
Michael:
You would click Mobile because that is how you would get to the Phones & Devices, which would lead you to all of our tablet promotions where at the bottom of the page it states "Available to Fido postpaid customers with wireless plan (voice only, data only, Fido Home Phone and prepaid plans not eligible)."
7:47 PM 
Michael:
OK, bye.
7:48 PM 
Michael:
I want to take the time to thank you for choosing Fido for your mobile needs!

I really wish we could’ve found a solution to your satisfaction today, however, I hope that you have an awesome day nonetheless!
7:48 PM  Michael has ended the session.

Many other companies have screwed up their web pages in similar ways, and the good ones make good on the offer as advertised. Fido has not.

[Jason]

Neat that you followed up on that, Jason, but I think you ended up on a different page than I did. Here is the link to the page at question, which I got to directly by googling fido & LG GPad III & deal: fido & LG GPad III & deal. No mention of having to have a phone account with them.

I'm not debating the point about what they said before, just they are no longer saying it. But I was surprised we can't agree on what the page now says. I used your link in the first post and that you just shared again now. That's why I said the page has changed. Did you check it again before posting saying I must be looking at a different page? Here's my screenshot before I question either my sanity or yours. You can see the URL in (might have to click it to zoom in).