republican-creole
Search:  

 
 
   News
newer
story category FairPoint Lost $10 Million in 1st Quarter
Is it the cost of the merger or the quality of the competition?
01:13PM Saturday May 17 2008 by KathrynV
tags: business · trouble · Fairpoint Communications
FairPoint investors continue to be wary about the profit potential of the company’s takeover of Verizon’s New England networks earlier this year. Reports about first quarter earnings show that FairPoint lost $10 million in the first quarter. The company is quick to assure others that the 34% drop in earnings is due to the initial cost of starting up the new network and that profits are sure to come around soon. However analysts believe that ramped-up marketing from the competition proved to be more of a problem than anticipated and could mean bad business for FairPoint down the line.

Related:
  1. Special Sunday Meeting May Block Verizon-Fairpoint Sale
  2. Fairpoint Makes Poor First Impression In New England
  3. Fairpoint Continues To Struggle With 911 Service
  4. FairPoint Delays Full Takeover of Verizon Networks
  5. FairPoint Is Failing to Please New Customers
  6. Massive AT&T Reorganization, Possible Layoffs?
  7. Sprint Close To Offloading Nextel
  8. Skype Takes Heat For Chinese Censorship
Forums » FairPoint Lost $10 Million in 1st Quarter
view: topics flat text 
Post a:

n1zuk
Didn't lose this week
Premium
join:2001-10-24
South Burlington, VT
·Future Nine Corpor..
·Comcast
·ViaTalk
·Packet8

Anyone surprised?

If profits were to be made with an antiquated network in a rural area, do you think Verizon (and all the other companies before them) would have sold it?

Anyplace that there is a profitably dense population area, the competition is already tough.

Next quarter, they will be trumpeting how well they did to only have 19% drop in earnings...
--
New to Forum Life? Click here and learn.

PhoenixDown
-- Ron Paul 2008 --
Premium
join:2003-06-08
Fresh Meadows, NY
clubs:

Re: Anyone surprised?

It'll be okay when the go bankrupt and a big telco buys them debt free for pennys on the dollar!

RARPSL

join:1999-12-08
Suffern, NY

said by n1zuk See Profile :

If profits were to be made with an antiquated network in a rural area, do you think Verizon (and all the other companies before them) would have sold it?
While I tend to agree with you I will play Devil's Advocate and suggest that there might be a profit to be made there but Verizon pulled out due to being able to make a better profit by investing its resources in a different service area.

It is a case of trade-offs. You can make a Profit of $X by investing it in Area1 or a Profit of $5X by investing it in Area2 so you go with putting the money in Area2. It might not just be an inability to make a profit in Area1 but only a case of making a lower profit from Area1 meaning that another company would find the profits from Area1 enough compared to what they could get from other investments to justify investing in Area1.

Note: I am not saying that this scenario is accurate but just suggesting it as an alternate explanation why one company would be unwilling to invest while another might while both would be able to make the same profit.

grcore
Power To The People

join:2003-12-06
usa

said by n1zuk See Profile :

Anyplace that there is a profitably dense population area, the competition is already tough
Not true, many of these dense areas are monopolies.

Anywhere there is no monopoly, the competition is tough...

n1zuk
Didn't lose this week
Premium
join:2001-10-24
South Burlington, VT
·Future Nine Corpor..
·Comcast
·ViaTalk
·Packet8

Re: Anyone surprised?

Maybe with residential telephone. But that's not where they make their money.

Business telephone and data is where the bucks are. And if their are any monopolies, I'd think it is FP that's excluded...
--
New to Forum Life? Click here and learn.
tacos4me

join:2008-01-14
Houlton, ME
·Great Works Internet

I love it.

I can't speak for other areas, but most everyone in my town sees FairPoint as the bad guy in this whole deal, and are dumping as many FairPoint services as they can. I've personally talked at least 6 or 7 former Verizon DSL subscribers into switching from FairPoint to a local ISP, as well as making the switch myself.
Marckus0513
Just Because

join:2003-01-11
Vernon, VT
·Verizon Online DSL

Re: I love it.

said by tacos4me See Profile :

I can't speak for other areas, but most everyone in my town sees FairPoint as the bad guy in this whole deal, and are dumping as many FairPoint services as they can. I've personally talked at least 6 or 7 former Verizon DSL subscribers into switching from FairPoint to a local ISP, as well as making the switch myself.
Why anyone would see Fairpoint as the bad guys is crazy to me. It is Verizon who spent little to nothing on the network in Maine, NH and VT for that past several years then bailed on everyone involved!! And you can talk everyone you want into leaving FP and going to one of the local ISP but unless they are wireless they still use FPs facilities and it is those facilities that the local ISP needs to be in good shape to give good service to their subscribers. So why doesn't everyone quite slamming FP who has a much better chance of improving facilities than Verizon ever would have done up here and give them a chance to do so! They just took over a network that has been neglected for years give them a chance!!

Mr Matt

join:2008-01-29
Eustis, FL
·Comcast

Name change in order

FairPoint should change it's name to UnFairPoint. As in unfair to subscribers. How long will it take for the government bail out to begin. Will Verizon be allowed to skip on down the road with a bag of money in it's corporate pocket and a sneer on it's corporate face at how they outsmarted the government. It will probably be very taxing on the American taxpayer.
ILpt4U

join:2006-11-12
Crystal Lake, IL
·AT&T Yahoo

Verizon Spun off the NE Business...

So is AT&T going to buy it up from FairPoint once it goes down the drain? AT&T already has a New England presence with SNET in CT, so its not like they are a stranger to the area...

Or perhaps Verizon will simply buy it right back, but for pennies on the dollar...

Or perhaps FairPoint really does have a plan, and will turn a profit in the next quarter or two...

SteveCon
IBEW 2222 Boston, MA
Premium
join:2004-09-02
Burlington, MA
·Verizon FIOS

Re: Verizon Spun off the NE Business...

I thought VZ would pick it back up for "pennies on the dollar" too - but I do not think so anymore. The fact is, northern New England is *not* profitable. VZ does not want it - and they're glad to be rid of it. VZ has sold other unprofitable areas and continues to offer additional areas as well.

The residents of the northern New England states should have held VZ's "feet to the fire" by calling on those states' PUC's to block the sale. Good luck getting a company like FP, with their financial troubles, to deploy what they've promised *even* if it comes with a premium monthly price.

I doubt ATT would even be interested for the very same reasons VZ sold.

mouseferatu
Too many cats, Too many mice
Premium,MVM
join:2004-03-16
Im not sure
clubs:
·Fairpoint Communic..
·Verizon FIOS
·Comcast
·Vonage

And this surprises who?

Take a good look at FairPoint, an already historically financially unstable company. And then take a good look at the mess that the Verizon management left when they dumped their employees, and their customers, and took the money and ran.

They probably laughed at the customers they shafted with this whole shifty deal all the way on their detour to the bank.

FairPoint's proposal was a bad concept from the start. It was a bad concept during the planning phase. (Plan? Plan, you say? There was no plan.)

There still appears to be no one at the helm. There are third party phone slammers charges on FairPoint bills, and they still seem to be oblivious to the fact that they own a lot of fiber equipped residences. They are still talking about upgrading me to DSL.

I find it hard to believe that a company that is as confused and disorganized as this one appears to be can possibly get it together enough to be profitable... they make living in the Boston commuter zone feel like the Yukon territory.
--
"Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for thou art crispy and good with catsup."

Shadow01

join:2003-10-24
Wasteland

State run telco

I think the next owners will be the States... Some will get their wish and have a government run local loop.
--
R.I.P. Moby 1964 - 2007
Forums » FairPoint Lost $10 Million in 1st Quarter


Tuesday, 07-Oct 17:57:12 Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Hosting by www.nac.net - DSL,Hosting & Co-lo | feedback | contact
over 9 years online! © 1999-2008 dslreports.com.