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Internet rebates with equipment?
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 | Some of the largest Internet companies like AOL and
MSN offer rebates on computer equipment purchases if my
make a long term commitment to their service. BUYER
BEWARE! |
| First, read the fine print. If you cancel before the
term is up, you will owe a hefty cancellation penalty,
even if there is only a month or two left on your term. |
| Second, consider their incentives. Once you are
contractually hooked, they don't have an incentive to
run an efficient dial up network with lots of access
numbers and a low rate of busy signals or otherwise to
provide strong customer service. |
| Third, consider your upgrade options. Two or three
years can be a long time to pay for dial up service you
no longer want when you are ready to change to DSL or
other high speed broadband service. |
| Fourth, evaluate your savings. The typical national
ISP cost is $21.95 per month. AOL runs almost $2 more
than average, yet has the highest advertising revenue of
all. If you are a business hosting customer you can
added Centrilink unlimited 56K access for only $12.50
per month -- a savings of $9.45 per month or $340 over
36 months. Savings are $1.95 per month or $70 per year
greater when switching form AOL. |
| Fifth, evaluate the equipment. Often the rebates are
on low end or about to be discontinued products that are
not selling well. Make sure you know the competitive
position and product lifecycle of the equipment you are
purchasing. |
| Sixth, evaluate the product base price. Compare the
before rebate price to comparable products. Often the
base price before rebate is higher than competitive
products, which is just another hidden cost. |
| Finally, if the value does not look good to you, avoid
the rebate, select the best product value for your needs
and sign up for Centrilink Internet
access. |
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