That's some customer service, AT&T!
AT&T's "About" page says the
following:
We value customer feedback. We conduct millions of customer interviews each year, including surveys of former and returning customers. Your comments help determine what we do and how we serve you.
Alfred Valrie is a self-described "lifelong" customer who gets his home phone, wireless, Internet and satellite TV from AT&T. He wanted to offer a suggestion, so he found the email address for AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson and sent him a
short note:
"Hi. I have two suggestions. Please do not contact me in regards to these. These are suggestions. Allow unlimited data for DSL customers, particularly those in neighborhoods not serviced by U-verse. Bring back text messaging plans like 1,000 Messages for $10 or create a new plan like 500 Messages for $7.
"Your lifelong customer, Alfred Valrie."
Alfred was surprised when he got a reply—from Thomas A. Restaino, AT&T's chief intellectual property counsel:
Restaino thanked Valrie for being a lifelong customer. Then he adopted an adversarial tone.
"AT&T has a policy of not entertaining unsolicited offers to adopt, analyze, develop, license or purchase third-party intellectual property ... from members of the general public," Restaino said.
"Therefore, we respectfully decline to consider your suggestion."
Why? Because if they ever did implement the suggestion, Alfred might try to take credit......or something. As the
Los Angeles Times points out, there is no patent involved and this type of corporate over-reaction does more harm than good when dealing with dedicated customers:
To call AT&T's stance tone deaf would be an understatement. This is the sort of ham-fisted corporate overreaction that serves no purpose but to keep customers at arm's length.