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Comments on news posted 2014-04-30 08:18:24: Last week we noted how AT&T's decision to maybe deploy 1 Gbps fiber to 100 cities was a major bluff, in that AT&T isn't willing to actually spend the money to make that happen. ..

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dslwanter
20 years on this site
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join:2002-12-16
Mineral Ridge, OH

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dslwanter

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Wold Changing

Here's what we will see: We're sorry, AT&T U-Verse next gen whatever the (beep) it's called is not available at your address.

Gilitar
join:2012-02-01
Mobile, AL

Gilitar

Member

Exactly!

ITALIAN926
join:2003-08-16

1 recommendation

ITALIAN926

Member

Hey Karl, where exactly are YOUR SOURCES that this is a bluff by AT&T? As far as I can tell, you sourced yourself from a previous headline. Why is it not a bluff when Google (who passed a few thousand homes - LOL ) claims to be going after 30 or so cities, and is the king of cherry picking? They made this official announcement a whole 8 days ago, and youre calling a bluff, thats a little bizarre, and I dont care what their historical pattern says.

Although Uverse is primarily FTTN right now, I wonder if AT&T currently has more FTTP than Google.
ITALIAN926

1 recommendation

ITALIAN926

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and by the way, CWA WANTS to do this work, and are on the consumers side. Larry Cohen has some pretty good connections with AT&T executives, Id say him publicizing this is an indication that is NOT a "bluff".

I remember when Verizon announced FiOS, half the users on this website were calling a bluff.

funchords
Hello
MVM
join:2001-03-11
Yarmouth Port, MA

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MVM

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Did you read the original article? Maybe bluff isn't the right word. Shall we say, Gigahoax? Ex-5G-geration?

Whatever it is, they're not spending any money on it.

Karl is right about AT&T. If they actually did the things that they talk about in their PR, they'd be a quite a different company. They seldom live up to their hype.
funchords

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MVM

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No doubt that CWA wants the work, but AT&T isn't laying out any money for it. No money, no work.

ITALIAN926
join:2003-08-16

ITALIAN926

Member

This thing was announced 8 DAYS AGO, not 8 months ago !
quote:
but AT&T isn't laying out any money for it.
Do you, or Karl, sit on AT&T's Board?

battleop
join:2005-09-28
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"and are on the consumers side"

The CWA doses not give a shit about the customer. They only give a shit about their members and nothing else.

ITALIAN926
join:2003-08-16

ITALIAN926

Member

quote:
The CWA doses not give a shit about the customer. They only give a shit about their members and nothing else.
The CWA is THE MEMBERS !!!!!!!!!!! You just said none of the people that work for Verizon/AT&T and other ILECS dont care about their customers. Mmmmkay.

Metatron2008
You're it
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join:2008-09-02
united state

Metatron2008

Premium Member

If there's anything At&t understands it's money.

And there's no way to upgrade Uverse that doesn't lose money without going fiber (Beyond giving a few small customers a few hundred feet away from vrads better, but still slower speeds then cable).

There's no way to truly compete with cable when your internet is 45/5 at MAX and cable companies are at 300 or 500 (Even companies like charter are going up to 200 mbit apparently).

If there's any reason to actually believe that At&t would upgrade it's now.

DeusExDinero
@50.184.210.x

DeusExDinero to ITALIAN926

Anon

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Re: Wold Changing

Are you familiar with the term "Vaporware"

This is VaporPOWER

The previous article(s) cite real world users of the so-called GIGAPOWER barely getting 70 Megabit per Second connections when they should be getting closer to 300. Hell, even 300 is a far cry from being anything resembling GIGA level. Besides, why deploy GIGA-ANYTHING if the backhaul can't or won't be able too handle the load?

As for CWA sending out this BS announcement? Anything to make their membership look good compared to projects put together by non-CWA members. Liars, cheats, and thieves.

Having been a CWA member, I can tell you that the only interest the union took in my team was how much money we could funnel to the PAC. Having worked for AT&T I can tell you firsthand that they are intentionally letting the copper rot with no plan to replace or repair it in many parts of the country. The long term plan is towers for mobility, not copper or fiber.
etaadmin
join:2002-01-17
united state

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Same ol' same ol' at&t. After 8 years millions are still waiting for fiber-to-the-node uverse and at&t wants to shift gears to fiber-to-the-home?

NOT CREDIBLE.

ATT
@144.160.226.x

ATT

Anon

No a Bluff

Just another strategy to get favorable regulations in order to deploy more FTTP in high FOI areas...
existenz
join:2014-02-12

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Re: Wold Changing

AT&T and TWC have been laying a lot of extra fiber around Kansas City lately, but only because Google made the process easier in KC, cutting red tape. I'd be surprised if ATT rolls out widely but they may go where it's easiest to deploy.
CiscoTech
join:2013-09-02

CiscoTech

Member

Title

This should read "Virtual World Changing"

Rick65
@99.157.193.x

Rick65

Anon

AT&T Build Out

The CWA should know that this is big bluff more than anyone. Just ask any retired or current employee. They would tell you that with absolutely no infrastructure in place for this type of expansion that it is indeed a bluff and a pipe dream. Who are you trying to kid AT&T.
dfxmatt
join:2007-08-21
Crystal Lake, IL

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Re: Wold Changing

It's more simple than that:

The world will change, just not as a result of or impacted by AT&T. Therefore, they can still claim they impacted it.
elefante72
join:2010-12-03
East Amherst, NY

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Re: If there's anything At&t understands it's money.

There is a remedy. Whitespace wifi, but that is years away..

In the meantime:

AT&T took the more conservative route in HFC and now it is biting them in the a$$. There are reports of v.fast within a few hundred meters (which would need chains or repeaters to work) that may help but ultimately copper is dead man walking.

So do they throw good money after bad. No. They let those VRAD neighborhoods freeze in time while new technologies are deployed by cable and fibre providers, and then upgrade them only if they have to. There is not going to be some populist CWA job work project. This is private money, not some magic government program, and they have to report back to stockholders.

Verizon is feeling the pain of their early BPON however this only requires swapping of the OLT, new spilt, and new ONT. Fiber is untouched, and that is the slow and expensive piece. Verizon can move as slow or fast as they want. They can upgrade as needed. But keep in mind that happened when an old wireline guy was running the show. T and VZ are now run by wireless jockeys and well wireline to them is like a model T. That's wrong, but wireless is stamping out profit like there is no tomorrow. What do you do.

AT&T has to ride out those VRAD neighborhoods just like the old dilapidated CO down the street from me wasting away on the last copper holdouts. I think the only thing the Verizon guys do over there anymore is to get out of the sun and drink some coffee.
elefante72

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Re: Wold Changing

While they may be interested in some consumer uptake, make no mistake this is most likely being laid for business services with much higher margins. Google buzz is making it easier to go after these markets, which is good for everyone. If Google determines to go after businesses, that will crush them too.

Verizon is crushing TWC in my area in business services. I compared last month for a small business (40 people). TWC wanted a 3 year contract, and $300 a month for 20/2 and $60 a voice line, so $420. Comically speaking Verizon was 2 land lines and 75/35 for $99 with a free router . Oh and no contract for Verizon.

Consumers may complain about cable prices, but areas with fiber are REALLY advantaged, and will start to make a differences where business (jobs, $) locate in the future. These companies are picking the winning cities of the future

alchav
join:2002-05-17
Saint George, UT

alchav

Member

A good sign that CWA and AT&T are on the Same Page!

This is a good sign, the Workers and Company have to be united. So whether it's Vapor News or not, divided they fall united they stand. GigaPower can be a reality, all AT&T has to do is run Fiber instead of Copper from the V-RADS. You are right, equipment has to change too, but the possibility is there. Like I said before, just like Google or Verizon, the Customer Base has to be there in order for this to happen.

WTB100MB
join:2007-08-16
Dallas, TX

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Re: Wold Changing

said by etaadmin:

After 8 years millions are still waiting for fiber-to-the-node uverse and at&t wants to shift gears to fiber-to-the-home?

I agree with you completely!

I also live in the city of SBC/AT&T's Corporate Headquarters, so you would think that the company could at least have the majority of Dallas "lit up" with fiber-to-the-node.

NOT THE CASE... the MAXIMUM download speed available at my address (in a nice neighborhood, not the ghetto) near White Rock Lake, 768k.

What a pathetic joke!

AT&T doesn't want to compete... and the sales rep was actually offended when I asked her to contact me once they offer could real broadband, not dial-up speeds.
sparc
join:2006-05-06

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When and where did Google announce your claimed 30 city deployment?

Karl has been very critical about Google Fiber in KC as a one-off test up until recently. He was forced to be less critical when Google actually started widening their deployment.

As for AT&T, everything they say is pretty much a pack of lies. When they deploy a city, we might actually take them seriously. The incumbent cable/phone companies have a long tradition of trying to keep the status quo with the least amount of investment.

battleop
join:2005-09-28
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I've managed a very large number of AT&T circuits and I can tell you from experience that CWA workers don't care about the customer. I get so sick and tired of hearing "That's not my job". It's an excuse that many field techs use to go sit in their air conditioned trucks for hours on end doing nothing.

The CWA does not give a shit about anything other than the CWA.
Rakeesh
join:2011-10-30
Phoenix, AZ

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CWA is just another one of those labor unions that skim off of the top. The only thing they're interested in is the membership dues they can bilk out of their members. They neither give a shit about AT&T nor AT&Ts customers. They'll do anything they can to pay lip services to their members, which includes making their members bosses look better than they actually are.

Gilitar
join:2012-02-01
Mobile, AL

Gilitar

Member

AT&T is full of it!

AT&T has a couple of million customers on fiber to the curb that are stuck with DSL! They have no desire to do the easy upgrade for those of us with fiber to the curb. So I ask, what makes any of you think that they have any intention of doing FTTP?
mpellegrini
join:2009-02-22
Tacoma, WA

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Re: Wold Changing

And that's precisely the way it's supposed to be. That's why union members pay their dues. To have THEIR best interests represented.
CXM_Splicer
Looking at the bigger picture
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join:2011-08-11
NYC

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I can't speak for the national (never met them) but at the local level, I assure you the union members care for the customer far more than the companies/managers do. It is easy for managers sitting in an office to say 'Screw 'em, go to the next job'. Not so easy for me to tell a customer 'Sorry your dialtone has been out since last year but the company simply doesn't want to spend the money to replace the cable'.

Are you a 'sit in the office' kind of guy?
axus
join:2001-06-18
Washington, DC

axus

Member

It's like AT&T wants the Comcast merger to go ahead

Why would they want that?

battleop
join:2005-09-28
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Re: Wold Changing

"Are you a 'sit in the office' kind of guy?"

I do spend most of my time in the office but when someone needs to be fixed and it's something I can fix I will go out and do it instead of just saying It's not my job and make the customer wait for the person who's job it is to fix it.

If I am on site and I see the problem is that the Cat5 cable has worked it's way loose from the customer's equipment I don't say "Welllllll I see your problem here but you need to send someone out to fix it" and then refuse to at least say what the problem is.

If I discover the problem is the customer's UPS turned it's self off, I'll at least offer to turn it on or if I'm don't want to take any responsibility I'll get one of their employees to talk to their IT guy and point at it and say this is what he is going to talk to you about.

I will listen to the customer to gather intel on the problem instead of saying "My tests are clean, no trouble found, closing ticket" when we keep reporting the problem is intermittent.

Problems with CWA employees goes from top to bottom.
CXM_Splicer
Looking at the bigger picture
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join:2011-08-11
NYC

CXM_Splicer

Premium Member

Of course you realize that the company does this deliberately to save money, don't you? A T1 install repair tech for instance doesn't have the tools or the training to open a splice and fix a bad pair nor a laptop to access and provision multiplexer equipment nor the information to go into the office and cross connect your T1 when the inside tech hasn't gotten to it yet.

Techs would need cherry pickers for aerial work, a cube truck for manhole work (how you drive 2 trucks at once is beyond me) both with a full complement of tools & equipment they might need for any possible aspect of the job along with the training to do all possible functions. If you are insisting on a one-tech-does-all solution, you have no one to blame but the company. Of course, if I am THAT valuable, I would want double what I am making now

I think you would be very surprised if you knew how much techs will go out of their way to fix something if they are able to
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