Sprint to Customers: You're Fired!

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We've all seen those signs in restaurants proclaiming, "we have the right to refuse service to anyone, for any reason." Of course, we all know the customer isn't always right. But would you ever refuse service to a customer who's complaints had become excessive?

On June 29, the Sprint Nextel Corporation did just that. ABC News reports that the $41 billion telecom company sent cancellation letters to more than 1,000 subscribers who had issued repeated service complaints. The letters informed the Sprint customers that their accounts would be canceled. You can see a copy of Sprint's letter to subscribers here.

Sprint, for its part, said that some of the fired customers have called their customer service line more than 300 times in one year. The subscribers were given one month's notice and their account balances were forgiven. In a seeming gesture of goodwill, Sprint didn't require these customers to pay early termination fees.

With about 53 million subscribers, Sprint has taken more than its share of criticism for its customer service over the years, as have many of its competitors. The company's stock has struggled in recent months and it announced earlier this year that its revenue will be close to flat for 2007. My guess is that these most recent developments certainly won't endear the company to any of its critics. While it's hard to feel sorry for a company as large as Sprint, would you ever fire a customer for complaining too much?

What do you think of Sprint's actions? Do you think Sprint has done enough to meet the needs of its customers? Can a small, fast-growing business get away with this type of thing? Or is Sprint just too big of a company to care?