Just Got A Call from Apple

[Jimpilot]

So the program was built to subsidize the cost of the phone and being included in that program doesn’t make anyone anymore loyal to Apple than the next guy handing over a grand or more that’s ludicrous

Well it does while not totally committing you, make continued upgrades simple and little to no additional cost.

I suspect most businesses would love to have that kind of relationship with as many customers as possible. And would be willing to make concessions to get them.

Either way the IUP prequalify Program worked for me, got my desired phone on its way for 3 Nov delivery

 

[KL77]

So the program was built to subsidize the cost of the phone and being included in that program doesn’t make anyone anymore loyal to Apple than the next guy handing over a grand or more that’s ludicrous

I know that OP used the word "loyal", and that's what you all latched onto with your fangs, but disregard his errant adjective for a second. As part of the IUP, you can ONLY upgrade through Apple. You can't do Verizon, BB, the big box stores, etc. What you're suggesting is that Verizon shouldn't prioritize it's stock for Verizon customers and should let everyone have equal access, cause fairness is greater than everything, right? That sounds silly when you say it out loud I hope. Furthermore, as part of the IUP, if you don't upgrade at exactly 12 months, you are flushing your money down the toilet, or more literally, into Apple's hands. You see how this all works against being an IUP member, and how they actually got sued last year and will get sued again this year right? Last year they actually waitlisted IUP members behind non IUP and got caught, this year they failed to provide enough in house stock to support their IUP members. Nobody forced Apple to get into the business of leasing their own phones, they decided to try and one-up the carriers and have screwed it up every year since. It's business, you promise me something, you deliver. Same way I have to pay my bills on time each month. The irony of it all is some of us aren't saying we deserve BETTER treatment than non IUP, we just want the same treatment. There are hundreds of thousands of people who couldn't get day 1 delivery through Apple and went through their carrier and got it- we don't have that option, for all intents and purposes Apple is our device carrier.

 

[sirenized]

It’s not unusual for businesses to offer loyalty perks to frequent customers. Look at airline miles, the grocery store card and charge card points. IUP members are in effect committed to Apple more than a purchase customer going forward.

Anyone can join IUP, so why not a benefit for those who are Apple’s (arguablyIt's not entitlement, it's business. Apple bills the iPhone Upgrade Program as offering certain benefits, and then it fails to provide those benefits. I don't expect to be catered to because I'm part of the IUP, but when you sell the program as something and fail to live up to it, you better believe you're gonna piss those customers off. The whole "whiny" and "entitled" label that you guys on this forum throw about left and right is silly. It's business, there are contracts that must be lived up to. That you would eat it in a similar situation shows not our entitlement, but your lack of fortitude, sorry. IUP users are the most lucrative users that Apple has and they have spat in their faces two years in a row.

FYI OP, the refund of the last payment is not some special benefit this lady is giving you, it's part of the IUP terms.

Is there a section of ToS in iUp that guarantees a launch day delivery for all devices? Or does the iUp just allow you to skip several steps in the ordering process that the rest of the populace must go through?

I’m not on iUp. My app was down when preorder went live. I refreshed for 3 minutes with no luck. I didn’t whine and had this novel idea to give the website a shot since the app was clearly not working. I had my order done by 3:05. 15 minutes later my app still didn’t work. Never did I think about writing an email to Tim Cook because 10million people were trying to utilize an app at the same time and clearly he owed “me” something.

 

[cwilliams706]

I know that OP used the word "loyal", and that's what you all latched onto with your fangs, but disregard his errant adjective for a second. As part of the IUP, you can ONLY upgrade through Apple. You can't do Verizon, BB, the big box stores, etc. What you're suggesting is that Verizon shouldn't prioritize it's stock for Verizon customers and should let everyone have equal access, cause fairness is greater than everything, right? That sounds silly when you say it out loud I hope. Furthermore, as part of the IUP, if you don't upgrade at exactly 12 months, you are flushing your money down the toilet, or more literally, into Apple's hands. You see how this all works against being an IUP member, and how they actually got sued last year and will get sued again this year right? Last year they actually waitlisted IUP members behind non IUP and got caught, this year they failed to provide enough in house stock to support their IUP members. Nobody forced Apple to get into the business of leasing their own phones, they decided to try and one-up the carriers and have screwed it up every year since. It's business, you promise me something, you deliver. Same way I have to pay my bills on time each month. The irony of it all is some of us aren't saying we deserve BETTER treatment than non IUP, we just want the same treatment. There are hundreds of thousands of people who couldn't get day 1 delivery through Apple and went through their carrier and got it- we don't have that option, for all intents and purposes Apple is our device carrier.

I get your explanation, you all need Apple to deliver on the agreement between you two. I wonder what's causing them to experience issues on their end?

 

[KL77]

Is there a section of ToS in iUp that guarantees a launch day delivery for all devices? Or does the iUp just allow you to skip several steps in the ordering process that the rest of the populace must go through?

I’m not on iUp. My app was down when preorder went live. I refreshed for 3 minutes with no luck. I didn’t whine and had this novel idea to give the website a shot since the app was clearly not working. I had my order done by 3:05. 15 minutes later my app still didn’t work. Never did I think about writing an email to Tim Cook because 10million people were trying to utilize an app at the same time and clearly he owed “me” something.

No, there is a section in there talking about subject to device availability IIRC. You don't understand the issue, nor do you want to, so why bother posting? You want to call people whiners, so do it.

EDIT: Let me add this analogy. Say you're on Verizon's upgrade plan where the promise is you can upgrade every 12 months. You can only upgrade through Verizon, not any other store. On launch day, Verizon decides to sell stock to everyone in the world, not just Verizon customers, knowing that you are locked in and have to pay them whether they provide you or not, and you don't get to upgrade for 2 more months. You are ok with that? I'm glad not all customers are such pushovers, retailers would have a field day screwing us all over.

 

[dolphin2421]

I know that OP used the word "loyal", and that's what you all latched onto with your fangs, but disregard his errant adjective for a second. As part of the IUP, you can ONLY upgrade through Apple. You can't do Verizon, BB, the big box stores, etc. What you're suggesting is that Verizon shouldn't prioritize it's stock for Verizon customers and should let everyone have equal access, cause fairness is greater than everything, right? That sounds silly when you say it out loud I hope. Furthermore, as part of the IUP, if you don't upgrade at exactly 12 months, you are flushing your money down the toilet, or more literally, into Apple's hands. You see how this all works against being an IUP member, and how they actually got sued last year and will get sued again this year right? Last year they actually waitlisted IUP members behind non IUP and got caught, this year they failed to provide enough in house stock to support their IUP members. Nobody forced Apple to get into the business of leasing their own phones, they decided to try and one-up the carriers and have screwed it up every year since. It's business, you promise me something, you deliver. Same way I have to pay my bills on time each month. The irony of it all is some of us aren't saying we deserve BETTER treatment than non IUP, we just want the same treatment. There are hundreds of thousands of people who couldn't get day 1 delivery through Apple and went through their carrier and got it- we don't have that option, for all intents and purposes Apple is our device carrier.

Well said... IUP members have agreed to be locked into an upgrade agreement with Apple -- Apple can count on our buying their latest product and they can poll us to determine which configuration we want, in advance. There should be a benefit to that. Unfortunately it isn't working out to provide enough benefit so I'll be opting out of the IUP going forward. It's proven to be a restriction rather than a benefit.

 

[Dunbar]

Wait until next year when all the iUP users realize they can’t get the new iPhone at the September launch without paying for 12 months first. I expect lots of complaint posts here.

 

[Zxxv]

............. the upgrade program. I said for loyal customers such as myself and many of you, who purchase every version of the phone and have numerous other apple products that we should pretty much be guaranteed a phone on release day since we are the most loyal. It should be a perk of the program.

She agree'd and said she would pass on the information. She also said they would refund my first payment on the new phone once I make it. She said my date is one of the best ones right now and although she could not guarantee it there is a chance my phone will ship sooner.

Kinda nice to see them reach out to me so fast. I'm still annoyed but it is great customer service by Apple. The only thing that can make me 100% happy is to get me my phone on release day but she said there is no way for her to do that...

Not really. Like you say you are a loyal customer. So you are hooked. So Apple knows you will buy. Its the newbies who need to be made to feel special. So they also get hooked.

Business.

 

[Brandonjr36]

Ah, to be 12 years old again.

Oh I wish I was 12 again especially if I can make $750 off an iPhone. That wouldve been bank back then.

 

[Kahsheh]

The thing is, if you are completing your IUP, you have to use the phone app. I tried doing it on my iPad and it said I need to finish using my phone. This is where it sucks as you are limited to where you can finish your order.

 

[Allyance]

I understand your frustration about loyalty. Years ago we lived in an area with no cable TV and 60 miles from off air transmitters, so when DirecTV first came out I paid $900 for the RCA receiver and dish, primarily for my mother who was living with us. Do you think they would ever acknowledge our length of service, nope. Every time we called for service or account problems, it was like we were nobody. How hard would it had been to put a box on the customers account page to say to the CSR we were a loyal customer since 1991? How nice it would been for a word of thanks once in awhile. When HDTV and off air went digital, I got a hi-gain antenna and amplifier and told DirecTV to shove it.

 

[wesk702]

Its actually refund of the first payment, however I did not know this.

Lots of valid points brought up here.

Do we have to call for this, or is it automatic?

 

[KL77]

Wait until next year when all the iUP users realize they can’t get the new iPhone at the September launch without paying for 12 months first. I expect lots of complaint posts here.

That's the reality, too. Any IUP who chose not to upgrade to the 8 and waited for the X better be aware they are going to have make first month payment, taxes, + 2 catch up monthly payments to upgrade if September remains the initial launch date.
[doublepost=1509214080][/doublepost]

Do we have to call for this, or is it automatic?

I can't find it right now, but I know it's printed somewhere- any payments made within 30 days of upgrade are refunded automatically.

 

[ApfelKuchen]

Well just ask BlackBerry how fast that can change if your customer base leaves you. Of course technology had a lot to do with that but their are numerous other example of customers disappearing.

Sure, but Blackberry failed to respond to changing market conditions. They had a very loyal following, but they didn't adapt in time. All the loyalty in the world doesn't matter if you don't deliver what the public wants. Apple created demand for smartphones, Blackberry did a poor job of adapting. A loyalty program probably would not have helped Blackberry.

Loyalty programs are only used in certain business sectors, and those tend to be highly competitive markets where there's little room for distinction between brands. Two airlines fly from here to there - will you choose to fly one on a consistent basis, or just go with whichever airfare is lower at the moment? The accumulation of miles towards a free flight is about the only thing that may tip the balance (and sometimes, in favor of a higher airfare).

Meantime, everything comes at a cost. The cost of airline loyalty programs is factored into airfares. They're simply another product feature, and businesses decide what feature set will be most appealing to their customers. In the end, a company aims for a certain profit margin, so the cost of goods is constrained by the target selling price.

Besides, Apple uses loyalty strategies the airlines can't, especially proprietary platforms and a highly integrated ecosystem.

Bottom line, most businesses do not give preferential treatment to loyal customers. The companies do their best to earn that loyalty by delivering the kind of products and service the customers prefer. The companies have to strike a balance between maintaining customer loyalty and attracting new customers. Generally, that means treating all customers equally well.

 

[dolphin2421]

No, there is a section in there talking about subject to device availability IIRC. You don't understand the issue, nor do you want to, so why bother posting? You want to call people whiners, so do it.

EDIT: Let me add this analogy. Say you're on Verizon's upgrade plan where the promise is you can upgrade every 12 months. You can only upgrade through Verizon, not any other store. On launch day, Verizon decides to sell stock to everyone in the world, not just Verizon customers, knowing that you are locked in and have to pay them whether they provide you or not, and you don't get to upgrade for 2 more months. You are ok with that? I'm glad not all customers are such pushovers, retailers would have a field day screwing us all over.

Exactly. Which is why I just sent my own email.

 

[DNichter]

We’re all loyal customers. I don’t think preference should be given. Nice that they reached out though.

 

[AttilaTheHun]

After the whole fiasco the other day I wound up e-mailing Tim Cook in disgust that the people with the upgrade option didn't stand a fair chance at getting the phone on release day since we couldn't get into the App. I told them by the time I got in it was 15 minutes past the hour and the earlier ship date was 11/17-24.

So today I get a call from Austin, Texas and I pick it up not knowing who it was. It was an assistant of Tim Cooks to speak to me about my experience. She went on to explain that it was because of the volume of people trying to get on, yada, yada... I said I understand that but I've purchased everyone version of the iPhone since the 3g and my wife and I have been a member of the upgrade program. I said for loyal customers such as myself and many of you, who purchase every version of the phone and have numerous other apple products that we should pretty much be guaranteed a phone on release day since we are the most loyal. It should be a perk of the program.

She agree'd and said she would pass on the information. She also said they would refund my first payment on the new phone once I make it. She said my date is one of the best ones right now and although she could not guarantee it there is a chance my phone will ship sooner.

Kinda nice to see them reach out to me so fast. I'm still annoyed but it is great customer service by Apple. The only thing that can make me 100% happy is to get me my phone on release day but she said there is no way for her to do that...

Be happy you get a respond I didn't

 

[Hieveryone]

Does the Apple Upgrade program guarantee the latest iPhone on launch day or soon there after?

I mean if it did I wouldn't mind as someone who does not have the upgrade program.

 

[praterkeith]

Ah, to be 12 years old again.

Hooked on Phonics has failed this generation.

 

[bambooshots]

I believe it's tcook@apple.com. I wouldn't even bother, unless you appreciate being paid lip service. He isn't responding, it's a PR shill who is going to say "sorry it happened, we value your feedback, but we can't do anything this year and will take it into consideration next year. oh you also can upgrade at the same time next year by just paying 3 extra payments to catch up to the release date". Saved you some time.

Let him email T. Cook. It won't change among but he will FEEL better about it.

 

[cwosigns]

It's not entitlement, it's business. Apple bills the iPhone Upgrade Program as offering certain benefits, and then it fails to provide those benefits. I don't expect to be catered to because I'm part of the IUP, but when you sell the program as something and fail to live up to it, you better believe you're gonna piss those customers off. The whole "whiny" and "entitled" label that you guys on this forum throw about left and right is silly. It's business, there are contracts that must be lived up to. That you would eat it in a similar situation shows not our entitlement, but your lack of fortitude, sorry. IUP users are the most lucrative users that Apple has and they have spat in their faces two years in a row.

FYI OP, the refund of the last payment is not some special benefit this lady is giving you, it's part of the IUP terms.

No, there is a section in there talking about subject to device availability IIRC. You don't understand the issue, nor do you want to, so why bother posting? You want to call people whiners, so do it.

EDIT: Let me add this analogy. Say you're on Verizon's upgrade plan where the promise is you can upgrade every 12 months. You can only upgrade through Verizon, not any other store. On launch day, Verizon decides to sell stock to everyone in the world, not just Verizon customers, knowing that you are locked in and have to pay them whether they provide you or not, and you don't get to upgrade for 2 more months. You are ok with that? I'm glad not all customers are such pushovers, retailers would have a field day screwing us all over.

That analogy is kind of apples and oranges. Verizon isn't the phone manufacturer.

I've paid full price for every iPhone since Verizon stopped offering the Unlimited Data Plan, so that I could keep that plan. I still have it. I upgrade at full price every year. I can buy from Verizon, Apple, Best Buy, Target, etc. because I'm not locked into one purchase path. If getting a phone on launch day is that much of a priority for you, it sounds like the IUP is the least likely way to ensure that it happens.

 

[KL77]

That analogy is kind of apples and oranges. Verizon isn't the phone manufacturer.

I've paid full price for every iPhone since Verizon stopped offering the Unlimited Data Plan, so that I could keep that plan. I still have it. I upgrade at full price every year. I can buy from Verizon, Apple, Best Buy, Target, etc. because I'm not locked into one purchase path. If getting a phone on launch day is that much of a priority for you, it sounds like the IUP is the least likely way to ensure that it happens.

Yes, but when Apple decided to one-up the carriers and keep all the money they split with them by selling the device on their own installment plan, they BECAME a carrier when it comes to your device. You are locked in with Apple for 24 months, the same as you would be with Verizon. As someone who kept VZW unlimited until early this year, it was the main reason I went with the IUP- it doesn't affect your contract with Verizon because Apple is playing the role of carrier when it comes to your device contract. Now you have customers who are walled into Apple's little garden ten different ways and you can screw them over at your leisure. Super smart business move on their point, but I feel like it's going to cost them a lot of IUP members this coming year.

 

[KUKitch]

Does the Apple Upgrade program guarantee the latest iPhone on launch day or soon there after?

I mean if it did I wouldn't mind as someone who does not have the upgrade program.

No it doesn’t

 

[bambooshots]

Yes, but when Apple decided to one-up the carriers and keep all the money they split with them by selling the device on their own installment plan, they BECAME a carrier when it comes to your device. You are locked in with Apple for 24 months, the same as you would be with Verizon. As someone who kept VZW unlimited until early this year, it was the main reason I went with the IUP- it doesn't affect your contract with Verizon because Apple is playing the role of carrier when it comes to your device contract. Now you have customers who are walled into Apple's little garden ten different ways and you can screw them over at your leisure. Super smart business move on their point, but I feel like it's going to cost them a lot of IUP members this coming year.

Let the buyer beware.

I like to keep things simple. I just buy it outright.

It served me well this year.

 

[AdonisSMU]

I really don't see the allure of the Apple program. In my opinion, it doesn't offer anything more than one cannot get on his or her own. And I agree with those who said that those a part of said program should not be entitled to first crack at ordering. And I also agree that it doesn't matter how many Apple products one has previously owned.

Being a member of the program did not guarantee you launch day delivery. I think it is in poor form that you emailed Tim complaining that your entitlement mindset didn't get what it wanted on the exact day you expected. You had an adult temper tantrum and now you want to brag about Apple placating you. Way to go.

Yeah hand that person an adult diaper. 😀

The idea that someone should get special treatment because they went into debt to buy Apple products for years is nuts.