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Consumer Reports: FiOS, U-Verse Tops
Followed by Smaller Cable Companies Like Cablevision
According to a new survey of 70,000 users by Consumer Reports, Verizon FiOS and AT&T U-Verse rank highest among the magazine's readers when it comes to the triple play -- followed closely by smaller regional cable operators like Cox, Cablevision, or Bright House Networks. When it comes to just Internet service -- the survey ranked WideOpenWest (WOW) the best in customer satisfaction. Unfortunately for users, notes the magazine, most consumers don't really have many choices in their market. "Verizon FiOS and AT&T U-verse are available in only one-third of the U.S., and almost nowhere are they both available," observes Consumer Reports. The report also notes that while just 1.4% of consumers have cut the cord in the last two years, 7% of current pay-television subscribers are considering cutting TV service. The full rankings appear in the May print edition of Consumer Reports.
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baineschile
2600 ways to live
Premium Member
join:2008-05-10
Sterling Heights, MI

baineschile

Premium Member

Is it me?

Or is this the same report printed year after year.
jmmilner
join:2001-11-20
Yorkville, IL

jmmilner

Member

Re: Is it me?

I read the article on CR's website and they actually say "most major providers scored about the same in satisfaction as in recent years".

dvd536
as Mr. Pink as they come
Premium Member
join:2001-04-27
Phoenix, AZ

dvd536 to baineschile

Premium Member

to baineschile
said by baineschile:

Or is this the same report printed year after year.

not surprising. fibre is the future.

Gbcue
Premium Member
join:2001-09-30
Santa Rosa, CA

1 recommendation

Gbcue

Premium Member

Caps

I hope Consumer Reports will rank U-verse lower due to the 250GB caps with OVERAGES!

Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI

Nightfall

MVM

Re: Caps

said by Gbcue:

I hope Consumer Reports will rank U-verse lower due to the 250GB caps with OVERAGES!

Yea, because 98% of their reader base will be affected by them.
/sarcasm

KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium Member
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK

KrK

Premium Member

Re: Caps

Most of the public doesn't know and won't care. For now--- but that will start to change as more people are made aware and as usage climbs steadily and the caps and overages are enforced.

Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI

Nightfall

MVM

Re: Caps

said by KrK:

Most of the public doesn't know and won't care. For now--- but that will start to change as more people are made aware and as usage climbs steadily and the caps and overages are enforced.

So far, the caps have been high enough were 98% of the people will never hit them. When the technology changes and the thirst for more bandwidth increases, then I will expect the ISPs to adjust. If they don't then we can go down this road.

KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium Member
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
Netgear WNDR3700v2
Zoom 5341J

1 recommendation

KrK

Premium Member

Re: Caps

Unfortunately, I guess I have a more pessimistic view which I feel IMHO is supported by these companies past history.

What I believe is they will offer higher "more generous" caps now, while first imposing the new billing model. Once this business model is well entrenched and has spread amongst the very limited competition, and it's too late to stop it, then the "adjustments" will be made.... Downward, and prices upward.

I fully expect the caps to turn into a series of "tier packages" where the base rate will be very low, and this way they can "enhance revenue" by not only charging people who go over, but by selling people on "higher tiers" that many will use infrequently, resulting in more gravy for the provider.

Time will tell to see if your suggestion, or mine, will be borne out. However, I say the odds are STRONGLY in my favor.... and their past altruism (Ha!) supports my position.
MyDogHsFleas
Premium Member
join:2007-08-15
Austin, TX

MyDogHsFleas

Premium Member

Re: Caps

quote:
I fully expect the caps to turn into a series of "tier packages" where the base rate will be very low, and this way they can "enhance revenue" by not only charging people who go over, but by selling people on "higher tiers" that many will use infrequently, resulting in more gravy for the provider.

You've been fooled by the insistence on calling them "caps". The AT&T U-verse plan is already a tiered plan, it's not a "cap". It's 250GB, plus $10 per each additional 50GB, only if you exceed the monthly limit 3 times.

$10/50GB may be considered high by you, but it's not a punitive number. Nor is it a "cap" in the sense that they will terminate you if you go over it, or choke down your bandwidth, or something like that.

KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium Member
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK

KrK

Premium Member

Re: Caps

Ok, let's call it Tiers + UBB

That doesn't make it any better.... and the point is, I don't expect the "base rate" 250GB limit to stay. I expect it to be lowered, and instead new "tiers" of data usage thresholds (caps!) imposed.
MyDogHsFleas
Premium Member
join:2007-08-15
Austin, TX

MyDogHsFleas

Premium Member

Re: Caps

Maybe but I think not. It all depends on the utilization ratio of customers going forward, and the decreasing costs of bandwidth, both marginal cost (which most here seem to think is the ONLY cost), and amortization of capex. I don't think they'll do it "because they can", because (don't laugh) of competition.

Right now I see this as a revenue neutral move.

AVD
Respice, Adspice, Prospice
Premium Member
join:2003-02-06
Onion, NJ

AVD

Premium Member

Re: Caps

It will be like the old cell phone minute plans.

Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI

Nightfall to KrK

MVM

to KrK
said by KrK:

Unfortunately, I guess I have a more pessimistic view which I feel IMHO is supported by these companies past history.

What I believe is they will offer higher "more generous" caps now, while first imposing the new billing model. Once this business model is well entrenched and has spread amongst the very limited competition, and it's too late to stop it, then the "adjustments" will be made.... Downward, and prices upward.

I fully expect the caps to turn into a series of "tier packages" where the base rate will be very low, and this way they can "enhance revenue" by not only charging people who go over, but by selling people on "higher tiers" that many will use infrequently, resulting in more gravy for the provider.

Time will tell to see if your suggestion, or mine, will be borne out. However, I say the odds are STRONGLY in my favor.... and their past altruism (Ha!) supports my position.

To be honest, we haven't seen this kind of thing in the past, so I don't know how you can say "based on past experience". I see your pessimistic view though, and all I can say is, "We will see". I hope I am right, but who knows what will happen. If AT&T and Comcast don't change, its my hope to see other providers offer unlimited service for a little higher price. Let the consumers speak with their wallets, and then you will see the big players change with the times. It has happened in the cell phone market, and it will happen here. I guess we will see in time.
moonpuppy (banned)
join:2000-08-21
Glen Burnie, MD

moonpuppy (banned)

Member

Re: Caps

said by Nightfall:

To be honest, we haven't seen this kind of thing in the past, so I don't know how you can say "based on past experience". I see your pessimistic view though, and all I can say is, "We will see". I hope I am right, but who knows what will happen. If AT&T and Comcast don't change, its my hope to see other providers offer unlimited service for a little higher price. Let the consumers speak with their wallets, and then you will see the big players change with the times. It has happened in the cell phone market, and it will happen here. I guess we will see in time.

Guess you don't remember the early days of Compuserve. Peak and off-peak rates, chat (CB Simulator) was a per hour charge, different speeds costs (300/1200/2400 baud modems), etc.

Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI

Nightfall

MVM

Re: Caps

said by moonpuppy:

said by Nightfall:

To be honest, we haven't seen this kind of thing in the past, so I don't know how you can say "based on past experience". I see your pessimistic view though, and all I can say is, "We will see". I hope I am right, but who knows what will happen. If AT&T and Comcast don't change, its my hope to see other providers offer unlimited service for a little higher price. Let the consumers speak with their wallets, and then you will see the big players change with the times. It has happened in the cell phone market, and it will happen here. I guess we will see in time.

Guess you don't remember the early days of Compuserve. Peak and off-peak rates, chat (CB Simulator) was a per hour charge, different speeds costs (300/1200/2400 baud modems), etc.

I do, and they were faced with an "adapt or die" scenario and died. Many other ISPs offered unlimited. Other ISPs tried that same or a similar scenario with ISDN lines when I had one back in the day.

Helps if you make a valid point that fits the argument.
moonpuppy (banned)
join:2000-08-21
Glen Burnie, MD

moonpuppy (banned)

Member

Re: Caps

said by Nightfall:

said by moonpuppy:

said by Nightfall:

To be honest, we haven't seen this kind of thing in the past, so I don't know how you can say "based on past experience". I see your pessimistic view though, and all I can say is, "We will see". I hope I am right, but who knows what will happen. If AT&T and Comcast don't change, its my hope to see other providers offer unlimited service for a little higher price. Let the consumers speak with their wallets, and then you will see the big players change with the times. It has happened in the cell phone market, and it will happen here. I guess we will see in time.

Guess you don't remember the early days of Compuserve. Peak and off-peak rates, chat (CB Simulator) was a per hour charge, different speeds costs (300/1200/2400 baud modems), etc.

I do, and they were faced with an "adapt or die" scenario and died. Many other ISPs offered unlimited. Other ISPs tried that same or a similar scenario with ISDN lines when I had one back in the day.

Helps if you make a valid point that fits the argument.

Here is the "flaw" in your argument. During the modem days, it was easy to shop around. Changing providers meant dialing a different number. Don't like Compuserve? Dial up America OnLine.

That was then. Now is either a monopoly or duopoly of high speed providers. I have 3 high speed providers in my area (FIOS, Comcast, or Broadstripe.) That is 2 more than most places.

Now, if you go back to the AOL vs Compuserve argument, AOL basically died because of their all you can eat $20/month service. Idle for 20 minutes? There went your connection. I knew people that worked there and they were in a panic trying to add thousands of lines so people could continue to dial in without having hours and hours of busy signals.

Back to the high speed companies. They act like the major airlines. Price increase at one leads to price increase at the other. Even prices are way different in areas where there is competition and areas that where there is no competition.

We are coming full circle and until we can switch high speed providers by a simple change of a phone number, we will be at the mercy of those providers.
WhyMe420
Premium Member
join:2009-04-06

WhyMe420 to Nightfall

Premium Member

to Nightfall
said by Nightfall:

So far, the caps have been high enough were 98% of the people will never hit them. When the technology changes and the thirst for more bandwidth increases, then I will expect the ISPs to adjust. If they don't then we can go down this road.

So far? AT&T hasn't even implemented them yet. Also, what makes you think AT&T's "2%" figure is accurate in the least? They can't even get their meters right.

Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI

Nightfall

MVM

Re: Caps

said by WhyMe420:

said by Nightfall:

So far, the caps have been high enough were 98% of the people will never hit them. When the technology changes and the thirst for more bandwidth increases, then I will expect the ISPs to adjust. If they don't then we can go down this road.

So far? AT&T hasn't even implemented them yet. Also, what makes you think AT&T's "2%" figure is accurate in the least? They can't even get their meters right.

Comcast has the same cap. 99% of their users never hit it and its a soft cap. I say that is pretty accurate. AT&Ts meters will get fixed, just like Comcasts. I say relax.
dubenezic
join:2004-05-06
Elizabeth, NJ

dubenezic

Member

Comcast

What no Comcast? I'm not surprised.
jmmilner
join:2001-11-20
Yorkville, IL

jmmilner

Member

Re: Comcast

Looks like CR didn't fall for Comcast's rebranding to "XFINITY". CR still calls them Comcast and they still rate near the bottom for phone, TV, internet, and bundles. They get extra negative points in my book for being worst in "price after introductory period".

CR did talk up the idea of trying to bargain on price but pointed out that even this is largely scripted these days. They recommend averaging your introductory rate with the regular rate over a 3 year period to get a better handle on how good a "deal" you really get. Of course the bottom line is that the only real choice most people have is between your local cable monopoly, local telephone monopoly, and Dish/Direct.
jhllne
join:2006-04-26
Madison, WI

jhllne

Member

Charter at the bottom again

I logged in and checked out the ratings. Not surprisingly, Charter is 2nd from last again in Cable TV (only Mediacom was worse). At the bottom of the Internet ratings again (only Mediacom and the satellite internet services were worse) and they were the worst option for phone/cable/internet bundling.

I do think Charter is improving, though. I recently switched back to Charter Internet because they pretty much gave it away for free for a year with my cable TV subscription as part of a promotion. So far, it's been reliable. That was not my experience when I had Charter internet a few years ago. Likewise, they are finally starting to add some more HD channels. And right now, their pricing beats AT&T Uverse by a landslide.

Hopefully they continue to improve and it is eventually reflected in the ratings.

cork1958
Cork
Premium Member
join:2000-02-26

cork1958

Premium Member

Re: Charter at the bottom again

said by jhllne:

I logged in and checked out the ratings. Not surprisingly, Charter is 2nd from last again in Cable TV (only Mediacom was worse). At the bottom of the Internet ratings again (only Mediacom and the satellite internet services were worse) and they were the worst option for phone/cable/internet bundling.

I do think Charter is improving, though. I recently switched back to Charter Internet because they pretty much gave it away for free for a year with my cable TV subscription as part of a promotion. So far, it's been reliable. That was not my experience when I had Charter internet a few years ago. Likewise, they are finally starting to add some more HD channels. And right now, their pricing beats AT&T Uverse by a landslide.

Hopefully they continue to improve and it is eventually reflected in the ratings.

I was going to do the same, but then read down to your post, so didn't have to. Yay!! Charter!!

Although, I must say, I've never had a problem with them in 10+ years of usage.

fifty nine
join:2002-09-25
Sussex, NJ

fifty nine

Member

Cablevision is not a small cable company

They're #8 of all MSOs. Exclude the dish guys and they are #6. Exclude telcos and they are #5 and in fact they have more subs than AT&T U-Verse and Bright House.

3 million subs is nothing to sneeze at.

ITALIAN926
join:2003-08-16

ITALIAN926

Member

Re: Cablevision is not a small cable company

Cablevision absolutely sucks and nobody has more misleading commercials on TV than they do. Id really like to hear Cablevision explain how they got outranked in this study since Optimum is SOOO much better than FiOS. LMAO.
rdmiller
join:2005-09-23
Richmond, VA

rdmiller

Member

?

"Verizon FiOS and AT&T U-verse are available in only one-third of the U.S., and almost nowhere are they both available."

Consumer Reports editors are probably too young to realize both Verizon and AT&T are the children of Ma Bell.

jmn1207
Premium Member
join:2000-07-19
Sterling, VA

jmn1207

Premium Member

Re: ?

said by rdmiller:

"Verizon FiOS and AT&T U-verse are available in only one-third of the U.S., and almost nowhere are they both available."

Consumer Reports editors are probably too young to realize both Verizon and AT&T are the children of Ma Bell.

I prefer the term, "evil spawn".
sonofsmog
join:2003-09-09
Ontario, CA

sonofsmog

Member

Re: ?

Verizon is actually the illegitimate offspring of GTE and Bell Atlantic.

GTE = The good parent (Loved hacking them back in the day.)
Bell Atlantic = Spawn of Satan.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

1 edit

FFH5

Premium Member

Ooma wins the voice ratings race

And who is Ooma? Never heard of them. But Consumer Reports rates them # 1. Ooma is a stand alone VOIP box you plug in to your router and then plug regular phone system in to it. The service is free in the US(not really - you have to pay $3.50/mo in taxes & fees), but the box costs $200. »www.ooma.com/products

Here are the current applicable monthly taxes and fees for your ZIP code:
»www3.ooma.com/tax_calculator.php
Description Amount
Regulatory Compliance Fee (what's this?) $1.59
911 Service Fee (what's this?) $1.59
Federal Universal Service Charge (what's this?) $0.29
State and local taxes, fees and surcharges (what's this?)
$0.00
Total: $3.47


Triple Play ratings


Separate voice, Internet, TV
FFH5

1 edit

FFH5

Premium Member

Re: Ooma wins the voice ratings race

said by FFH5:

And who is Ooma? Never heard of them. But Consumer Reports rates them # 1.

But Brighthouse Networks looks to be the best deal in almost all categories - if you are in their service area.
quote:
Bright House Networks is the ninth largest multichannel video programmer distributor (MVPD) in the US with 2.4 million customers in several large cities including Tampa Bay and Orlando, Florida; Bakersfield, California; Indianapolis, Indiana; Detroit, Michigan; and Birmingham, Alabama; along with several other smaller regions in Alabama and the Florida Panhandle. The Florida markets are adjacent and form one of the country’s largest cable clusters.
AT&T gets beat up around here all the time, but their U-verse service does very well in these ratings.

FiOS User
@verizon.com

FiOS User

Anon

Re: Brighthouse?

quote:
But Brighthouse Networks looks to be the best deal in almost all categories - if you are in their service area.

If I'm reading this right, Brighthouse is listed as the next-best choice not the best choice. The best choice as recommended by Consumer Reports is Verizon FiOS or AT&T U-Verse...

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

FFH5

Premium Member

Re: Brighthouse?

said by FiOS User :

quote:
But Brighthouse Networks looks to be the best deal in almost all categories - if you are in their service area.

If I'm reading this right, Brighthouse is listed as the next-best choice not the best choice. The best choice as recommended by Consumer Reports is Verizon FiOS or AT&T U-Verse...

But when you look at the chart, Brighthouse does best in the most categories and is cheaper to boot.

KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium Member
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
Netgear WNDR3700v2
Zoom 5341J

1 recommendation

KrK to FFH5

Premium Member

to FFH5
I have Ooma, have for several years. It works great, and after my initial investment (which has long paid for itself) it's totally free.

Unless you make international calls, then it's just super cheap.

My understanding is the new hardware is even better, but newer subs end up paying various fees (e911, etc) that older subs like myself are not paying.
sonofsmog
join:2003-09-09
Ontario, CA

sonofsmog to FFH5

Member

to FFH5
Yawn. I'll stick with my FIOS double play Cable + 35/35 Internet and Magic Jack bundle. I have a cellphone for most of my calling and Magic Jack give me a backup for what? $1.50 a month?!? Oh yeah and I can take it with me to Hong Kong and call back to the states for "free!"

kingdome74
Let's Go Orange
Premium Member
join:2002-03-27
Syracuse, NY

kingdome74

Premium Member

Verizon

I'm moving to one of the few areas where Verizon offers all their services and their bundled prices (114/month for the 35/35 tier) so blow away Time Warner's that it's not even funny. What my hope is the service matches the hype. Surveys like this are OK but I wonder if it is representative of the service.

••••
MyDogHsFleas
Premium Member
join:2007-08-15
Austin, TX

MyDogHsFleas

Premium Member

But... but... U-verse uses COPPER WIRES!

It can't possibly be ranked that high in customer satisfaction.

David
Premium Member
join:2002-05-30
Granite City, IL

David

Premium Member

Re: But... but... U-verse uses COPPER WIRES!

said by MyDogHsFleas:

It can't possibly be ranked that high in customer satisfaction.

Thanks for the laugh...

That is funny!
chgo_man99
join:2010-01-01
Sunnyvale, CA

chgo_man99

Member

Mediacom

Also regional (rural) cable operator but one of the worst when it comes to their price. Compared to Comcast, Comcast looks cheaper and more generous even with their 250GB cap. They cost on average more, and they require to get a 2 year contract to sign up for anything. I haven't seen comcast doing that but at least they don't cap (yet). Qwest is no competition, it has a lot less FTTP in their markets that Verizon.

I dont know if they are like that in all markets but thats what they have in Dubuque (IBM and McGraw Hill workplace).
jmmilner
join:2001-11-20
Yorkville, IL

jmmilner

Member

WOW still the one!

The only thing I really miss about the town I used to live in is WOW. It's nice to see that even 8 years later they still seem to be a decent if smaller act in a field loaded with big companies who all seem to subscribe to the old motto "We don't have to care, we're the phone/cable company!".
QLR
join:2009-06-23
Tallahassee, FL

1 edit

QLR

Member

My area: Comcast vs. CenturyLink. MEH!

The value definitely isn't there for these companies in my area. In fact, CenturyLink pricing is starting to resemble Comcast's in Tallahassee Left CLink a year ago after realizing that 3.0M DSL is the best they could do in my neighborhood. A year later, the speed availability has dropped to 1.5M. For $29.95, I can get a dry loop DSL with 768K. Um, I'll stay with Comcast, where I can get 1.5 for $35.

Best case scenario, 10M DSL for $60 vs 12M cable for $63.

CLink is promoting its Prism TV but I am not holding my breath for that to arrive in my hood. So CLink bundles with DirecTV.

TV services are pricey as it is... just glad I am loving Digital Economy on Comcast, $30 without contract. Comcast pricing ranges from $12 to $75 without mention of the digital economy package. Not sure about DirecTV. Prism TV seems kinda pricey as well.

Comcast does the triple bundle, but I don't see the value of having a landline and there isn't anything that matches my own package anyway. I have Digital economy cable ($30) and 12M internet ($47)... adding a phone line will push my bill past $100. No thanks, I give Verizon Wireless $130 for 3 lines as it is.

Not surprised that CL is 5 points higher than Comcast in the ISP dept.

I had a phone line thru CLink. Not bad, but I rarely used it. And now Comcast is badgering me trying to get me to order theirs. No use for it. Need to find out a way to opt out. Not surprised that CTL and Comcast is scored the same. Heard praises for both phone services.

Duopolies suck big time

Bill Neilson
Premium Member
join:2009-07-08
Alexandria, VA

Bill Neilson

Premium Member

Hate Verizon but got FiOS two years ago

and absolutely love it with no issues whatsoever and top speeds 99% of the time

Rather shocking that I may have to go back to regular crap when I move from this area to another that is non-FiOS enabled