MNF/MyNetFone VoIP Service to Vonex "Customer Migration"

Electronics & Technology
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In August 2021, Vonex announced to MyNetFone (MNF) customers that it had taken over the company. As part of the statement it said:

“There will be no effect on your existing services or service configuration. You will continue to be charged at the same rate you have agreed to with MyNetFone.”

As recently as 20 April 2023 the following notice still appeared on each invoice, as it has done since September 2021:

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Today, Friday 12 May, Vonex gave MNF customers a " NOTICE OF MIGRATION & CHANGE OF PLAN which for MNF users on the Whirlpool plan constitutes a signficant price increase for both phone plans and DiD’s - admittedly the Whirlpool plans were cheap, but in light of the statements made for the last couple of years it seems rude at best.

The notice includes pricing based on customer’s specific services and outlines the migration schedule.

Of particular interest is the old MNF portal. The notice states:

The legacy customer portal has been retired to make way for the new Vonex Customer Portal. We’ll be back in touch to showcase your new account management tools shortly after your service/s has been migrated. Should you require assistance during the transition period, please contact Consumer Support.

I tried accessing my account and sure enough, the portal no longer functions. After some investigation, it seems the portal was decommissioned without notice to customers on 28 April 2023. The person I spoke to apologised for the portal being decommissioned “suddenly” - I suggested perhaps something else had happened which got a laugh in response.

Also of interest is the Vonex migration FAQ (I felt dizzy with all the spin) and Residential Plan Details, the latter in part states:

I don’t wish to continue my service. Can I cancel before the migration?

Yes, you may cancel your service without penalty; however, we recommend using all existing call credits prior to cancellation. Unfortunately, unused credits cannot be reimbursed and will be forfeited.

At best, this seems a little rude and unexplained :rofl: Is there more to it? I’d find it hard to believe there isn’t - anything from a leaf out of the Allianz/TIO migration handbook on how to get rid of all the customers you no longer want, to something more ‘interesting’ around the support or otherwise of the old MNF infrastructure, even by someone unexpected :wink: or a combination thereof.

One hopes customer information is safe …

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Guess I have lost the $20 (of which $19 remains) I have with MNF. I don’t recall having ever been warned of the changes.

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Noted on the Wikipedia page’s chat that it needs a bit of an update. (I have generally stopped editing Wikipedia, as I am too much of a pedant.)

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In recent months wasted a lot of time with them because Vonex seemed unsure what was working and what was not. After a many tests and working with Vonex they finally reached the conclusion that their international SMS service from the portal was not working and they were not going to fix it. It works for Australian SMSs but not international.

Will interesting to see if they still have the international SMS service available with instructions in the new portal.

The real home use I have found for Vonex is to use an old mobile phone as a wireless VOIP phone.

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