Progresif has always seem to me to have a good marketing push behind their brand however some “truths” from their past do not seem to hold true anymore and these days such that I do refer to them as “a marketing company with a telco” as I read somewhere (probably from some random Reddit thread on /r/brunei)
Their brand and marketing image has been going on for a while but I noticed it around the time of their launch of the new mobile and home broadband plans in March 2020. I did like that they had memorable summaries and tag lines for their products that poked against the competition as seen in these captures of their old website
- “No throttling”
- “No 24 month contract”
- “Only pay for what you use”
- “No fine print”
- “No contract”
Screenshot of Progresif mobile plan page from March 2020
Screenshot from Progresif’s fibre plan page from September 2020
During that launch of new offer from the telcos they had this published the following with memorable quotes such as
- “…find the real differences when you read the fine print”
- “Remember, the first to eat sometimes burns their tongue”
- “We’ve got ONE simple, innovative and affordable plan”
They even had a video advertising just before their Feb 2020 relaunch which pushed their features and philosophies (screenshot below). Some things we weird like “To us, genius means it simple keeping” which is nonsensical enough that in one of my group chats, we likes to reference “Simple keeping” periodically
All in all, I like some of the ethos and tag lines and messaging they were trying to convey. But as with all marketing there is always the hidden aspects that it likes to leave out.
- Like the “No throttling” tagline, meant that if you used data beyond your quota, you’d have just no Internet. Depending on the situation this can be more problematic than the typical “bill shock” term that gets thrown around
- The “No fine prints” I presume was trying to convey the message that things are clear enough in their simple definitions of their products that you didn’t need to dig into fine print to see “surprises”. While I’m not sure what jab it could be making to its competition with that, I feel that the ethos hasn’t held up over the years and as always, there will always be fine print
Encounters with the fine print
Fibre pricing
This happened when I was thinking of upgrading to their 1TB Fibre plan in December 2024 based on the promo pricing as shown in the screenshot below
I thought the promo meant that you’d get the promo cost for their entire duration of the subscription. But I found out that was not the case when I was at the counter trying to upgrade. I was told that
- In order to get the promo price you needed an 18 month contract
- And you’d only get the price for 12 months and then it reverts back to the original pricing
- There is no mention of this on the main page and digging in a bit now, I can see some mention on their Fibre support page
What are the current on-going promotions for Progresif Fibre?
Our 1TB Progresif Fibre plans will be offered at a promotional price from 29 February 2024 to 31 March 2025. Sign up during the promotion period and enjoy a discount on your plan for 12 months.
- But it has mention of the contract
- Also from the screenshot we can see promo prices for 550GB and the support page does not mention that, so is that promo price the same 12 out of 18 months? I bet there is more “fine print” to be had
Yo! top-ups
I have a friend who is on their Yo! Prepaid and complained that their top-up validity kept on expiring before the 90 days stated in the app (screenshot below from September 2023)
And if you look up the Yo support docs it does mention this the difference so the app is/was incorrect (unsure if this has changed since)
How long is my Top Up valid for?
$5 Top Up is valid for 30 days. All other denominations for $6 above are valid for 90 days.
There is currently no mention of regular credit top up on the Yo! home page let alone credit top up time validity. And having different duration for different amount certainly fits into the “fine print”
Contracts
- It was previously stated “No 24 month contract” for mobile and “No contract” for Fibre
- “No 24 month contract” for mobile general still to hold true
- Generally no contract for typical prepaid/postpaid lines
- But 12/18 month contract for MORE
- “No contact” also holds true for Fibre
- It is an option but you can get discounts with a contract needing to read the fine print (or print that isn’t even listed and only find out when talking to them)
From Postpaid One Mobile support page
Is there a fixed contract duration when signing up for a Postpaid One Mobile Plan?
No, there are no fixed period contracts for signing up to the Postpaid One Mobile. You may terminate any time you wish.
From MORE postpaid support page
Will I be under a contract when I sign up for the MORE plan?
No, however if you take up a 12-month or 18-month contract, you will be able to enjoy a lower price on your monthly plan.
From Fibre support page
Is there a contract duration when signing up to Progresif Fibre?
You have an option for;
- No contract with one-time $100 installation fee, or
- 12-month contract with free installation (U.P. $100) when you sign up to a 1TB, 2TB or ZOOM plan.
Summary
So I wish Progresif could go back to some of their “roots” of how I knew of them in the past. They had the spunky kid attitude and in general I do like the vibe and brand they have
But currently time and time again right now they just seem like a marketing company with a telco. I’ll wait for the day it is a telco company with good marketing
The Wheat Field 