Stream Energy

[Donnye]

Rate this Electric Company

[adamtolbert]

Is Stream energy very competitive? Their residential rate went up Tuesday February 22. Right now their 12 month fixed price rate for residential electricity is:Rate: $0.125/kWh Offer Details: Minimum Term 12 month(s) Expiration Date TBD Fixed or Variable Rate Fixed Deposit $0 for Qualified Customers Late Payment 5% Cancellation Fee $250 Billing Options None Payment Options Credit Card, Check, Bank Draft, Pay Stations Offer Terms: Click here to view supplier's Terms of Service Click here to view supplier's Facts Label Contact for Service Interruptions: 1.888.313.4747 Contact Information: Stream Energy1950 Stemmons Freeway, Suite 3061Dallas, TX 75207Phone: (866)447-8732

[Donnye]

Stream Energy is not competing as far as across the board electric rates regardless of the electric usage used. Some of the Retail Electric Providers are offering a low energy rate for residences regardless if they use 500, 1000 or 1500 kwh in energy a month. Unfortunately it doesn't look like Stream Energy is doing this although they might have a rate plan I haven't seen yet. According to their Electricity Facts Label their rates are ok but there are actually a few other companies offering better electric rates. Facts Label (http://www.energyguide.com/finder/factslabel.asp?SupplierID=4254&OfferID=2275)

[Donnye]

Stream Energy (http://www.electricitybid.com/electricity/index.php/2007/05/27/stream-energy-residential-electric-rate/) most updated electric rate shows the 12 month price at 11.4 cents kwh. This is much better then a few months ago and compares closely to some of the other low cost providers. There are a few electric providers with a lower rate. One thing to pay attention to is whether the other providers charge a monthly customer service charge. Spark Energy (http://www.sparkenergy.com/SparkEnergyWeb/Residential/tabid/55/Default.aspx?refcd=ECLFLAT101) currently does not have a monthly customer service charge and is right under Stream on their rate. The also have a rate that remains the same regardless of the usage you use in a month. Here is Stream Energy's Electricity Facts Label (http://www.electricitybid.com/Texas-Residential-Electricity-Facts-Label.html). The Facts Label is the equivalent of the nutrition label on a can of food and is important to read before signing up on a rate. Pricing for TXU Service Area500 kWh1,000 kWh1,500 kWhMonth-to-Month Rate$0.13990$0.12990$0.12990One-Year Fixed Rate$0.12490$0.11490$0.11440Pricing for Reliant Service Area500 kWh1,000 kWh1,500 kWhMonth-to-Month Rate$0.14850$0.13850$0.13850One-Year Fixed Rate$0.12990$0.11990$0.11940Pricing for CPL Service Area500 kWh1,000 kWh1,500 kWhMonth-to-Month Rate$0.14850$0.13850$0.13850One-Year Fixed Rate$0.12990$0.11990$0.11940Pricing for WTU Service Area500 kWh1,000 kWh1,500 kWhMonth-to-Month Rate$0.14850$0.13850$0.13850One-Year Fixed Rate$0.12990$0.11990$0.11940Pricing for First Choice Service Area500 kWh1,000 kWh1,500 kWhMonth-to-Month Rate$0.14850$0.13850$0.13850One-Year Fixed Rate$0.12990$0.11990$0.11940The Price per Kilowatt Hour (“kWh”) provided by Stream Energy includes the price of the electric commodity, charges incurred by the applicable Local Wires Company (LWC), any other Related Fees associated with delivering electricity to your Service Address. The Price is a tiered pricing structure, based on the following tiers; i) up to 699 kWh depicted in the Facts Label as Average Monthly Usage of 500 kWh, ii) 700 to 1,499 kWh depicted in the Facts Label as Average Monthly Usage of 1,000 kWh, and iii) greater than 1,500 kWh, depicted in the Facts Label as Average Monthly Usage of 1,500 kWh.

[Donnye]

I was looking up Stream Energy in google recently to see what news has developed as of late and discovered there is a little buzz about the company on http://www.scam.com/. Apparently many people out there consider Stream Energy a scam. The question is why some people think this. I believe there are a few MLM opportunities out there that present an actual opportunity that has stood the test of time. Amway unfortunately did not make the cut as they went bankrupt and now a new company built off of the old was created called Quixtar. Mary Kay and Avon however have stayed around. Pampered Chef is another one that has been around for awhile now. I believe the success in these is their social structure and the demographic they reach. Mainly women join these 3 MLM's because the social networking it allows them is something many women enjoy and it is built around the type of products women like. On the other hand, men do not care for this type of social networking as enthusiatically as women do. Now take Ignite Energy as an example. There are several women joining this organization but it is not selling a product that women can really rally behind like they can with make-up. Not that all women jump for joy over mak-up but it does fit their profile as far as marketing considerations go. Ignite is very similar to the Telecom deregulation opportunities that developed. Excel Telecommunications came about and started selling local and long distance service as an MLM opportunity. 10 - 15 years later Excel became bankrupt shortly after merging with Vartec Telecommunications. All of the corporate people with Vartec and Excel went from there to Ignite or so it seems and now we have Ignite MLM selling deregulated electricity. Let's check back in 10 -15 years and see if Ignite is still around. I wouldn't waist your time with it as you will potentially lose all residual income if they were to go bankrupt or reorganize just like Excel\Vartec. Ignite or Stream Energy has fairly decent electricity prices but they also have a lot of sales reps who barely know what they are talking about. Be careful when talking to a sales rep and make sure they are up on their energy knowledge or you might find they are pulling stuff out of no where to make the sell.