One would have thought, with the lessons that Verizon appeared to have learned from missing out on the iPhone success, that they turned a corner with respect to it’s customers. A number of articles have suggested that they “get it” now — that the nickle and diming approach may protect the bottom line, but that such behavior engenders more frustration with customers than it may be worth. Reports surfaced that Google had a strong influence in the design of the Motorola Droid and that Verizon was NOT going to be “interfering” with the OS in any way. It was a breath of fresh air to existing Blackberry customers considering the new Droid.
Now it would appear that the news was too good to be true as the $15.00 charge to use Microsoft’s Active Sync — and by extension using your phone to sync with Microsoft Exchange servers — is the strategy to milk as much as possible from its customer base. It’s a bit like having someone offer to buy something you are selling without haggling the price down, realizing you could have asked for more money, then reneging on the deal asking for more money.
Here’s an interesting take on this potential roadblock for business users.
However, Droid, with its “iDon’t, Droid Does” advertising campaign, has the iPhone squarely in its crosshairs. The iPhone uses Microsoft’s ActiveSync technology to connect to Exchange, bypassing the need for an extra server like Research in Motion’s BES. This connectivity is inclusive with its $30 unlimited data plan. Droid also uses ActiveSync, so why does its data plan cost 50 percent more for the same functionality? Surely if Verizon is seeking to steal business customers from AT&T, it should make an attempt to be cost competitive.
