Kogan drags ISPOne into court over mobile

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blog Remember how Kogan issued a strenuous denial that it was its fault that high-usage customers were being dumped from its fladgling “unlimited” mobile plans on Telstra’s network? At the time, the company said the issues stemmed from an upstream wholesale Telstra partner. Well, it appears Kogan is prepared to put its money (or at least its lawyers) where its mouth is, with a new lawsuit filed against Telstra wholesaler ISPOne. ZDNet reports (we recommend you click here for the full article) that the pair are due to lock glares in the Victorian Supreme Court this morning:

“After launching mobile services in December, and battling through months of customer woes due to acceptable use policy “violations”, Kogan is now taking its service provider ISPOne to court.”

There’s also further information on this issue at The Australian and the Sydney Morning Herald. My personal opinion on this is as follows, as I wrote a few weeks back:

… the problems Kogan appears to be experiencing this week are precisely those which many telco resellers experience. On the one side, Kogan has customers trying to eke out the most they possibly can from its service. On the other side, it’s got the major telcos trying to ensure their networks can still function. In the middle sits Kogan, which has suddenly gotten a taste of the huge revenues which telcos command; but it’s also got a taste of the small profit margins telcos, especially telco resellers, command, and how those profit margins are squeezed on both sides by customers and wholesalers.

This is nothing new for the telco sector. And Australian customers are certainly not new to so-called “unlimited” plans. But it is something new for Kogan. The company should have expected precisely this situation to occur; and the fact that it hasn’t headed it off at the pass is emblematic of Kogan’s approach to everything he does. The entrepreneur is clearly a maverick upstart with a huge clutch of great ideas and a gift for publicity. And he’s had great success in many areas — we have to give him credit. However, there’s also a strong dose of arrogance in Kogan’s make-up; he would be wise to look carefully before stomping down where so many have trod weary paths before.

6 COMMENTS

  1. Having worked for a Reselling ISP. Why he operating a Tier 3 ISP?

    he should be a Tier 2 reseller. Not a Reseller whom Resells the resellers services (Tier 3) where these situations and problems can come up

    • That is twice now that I have picked up on spelling mistakes and Renai has left them uncorrected.

      I am beginning to worry. It is the small signs like this that can indicate something bigger is happening.

        • Thats it your fired. Packup your Macbook and your Ipad! Smoothwall Security will escort you out!

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