Modem returns: a new year and a new Google form – just what you are waiting for!

You might think that Google rules our lives and you might not be that wrong. Certainly for us at DIAA, we simply couldn’t manage programmes like Skinny Jump without Google forms and Google Sheets.

And so, let me introduce you to a new Google Form – MOE Modem Activations and Returns. This is to be used by public Stepping UP partners whenever a customer returns a modem that was supplied by the Ministry of Education (MoE) during the 2020 Covid-19 lockdowns. When schools were required to close as part of our national response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Education made a herculean effort to ensure that students were able to continue their learning from their homes. This involved providing internet connections to households with students, where there were no existing connections. Families were offered a fully subsidised connection for 6 months, which was subsequently extended until the end of February 2021.

Some families received modems that they didn’t need, while others never got around to activating their modems. As the subsidised period comes to an end, the Ministry expects that some families may not wish to retain their internet connection and are seeking assistance from our Stepping UP partner network to recover unwanted modems. We know that some partners have already been receiving these modems.

Families are being encouraged by the Ministry of Education to return any unwanted modems to a nearby Stepping UP partner and we (DIAA) will provide prepaid courier labels for these to be returned to us.

For families who have not yet activated their modems, they can still do this until 31 January 2021 and receive a 6-month subsidy, but time is running out on this option. If you receive any requests for assistance to activate modems supplied by the Ministry of Education, you can help by directing families to the relevant ISP – see list below. Of course if you are a Skinny Jump partner and a family needs help activate their Jump modem, you can use the same procedures as for any other Jump connection.

Ministry of Education – subsidised internet connection providers and modem types:

1. Vocus (Slingshot) 0800 892 843: Netcom device (NF18s), TPL link modem
2. MediaTribe (Bryte) 0800 890 105: D Link modem
3. Spark (fixed line) 0800 733 033: Akadian or Huawei Smart Modem
4. Spark (Skinny) 0800 475 4669: Huawei B618
5. Vodafone (Farmside) 0800 852 850: Huawei B525
6. 2Degrees 0800 544 889: ADM Fritz Box or Huawei B535
7. Fusion Networks 0800 368 324: TP Link Archer VR300
8. Compass 0800 640 840: D-Link DIR 853 Gigabit or Netcom NF10WV
9. Ash Net 0800 274 638: TP Link – Archer C20

So that makes three new Google Forms for 2021:

1. Jump Modem Returns Form – to be used whenever a Jump modem is returned or when you have trouble setting up a new Jump modem for a customer. This form is used to de-link the modem from the customer’s Skinny account and reset the modem, ready for re-issue.
2. Faulty Jump Modem Returns – to be used when a customer returns a faulty modem and if required, is issued with a replacement modem.
3. MOE Modem Activations and Returns – to be used when any modem issued as part of the MOE Covid-19 connection programme is activated or returned.