MEGAPATH NETWORKS PURCHASES PHOENIX NETWORKS → Hoping MegaPath Stays MegaPath

The big question from existing Phoenix customers has been: "Will I have to pay more?" Allow me to voice a concern from the "MegaPath side" of the equation: "Will the acquisition of Phoenix, with its lower-cost xDSL services and commensurately lower over-all service levels (tho admittedly not by much--from the DSLR ratings) dilute MegaPath's product?" For as a MegaPath customer--and damn pleased with the product, I might add--that would be my main concern! "MegaPath's services are high", is the complaint from the Phoenix customers. Well, I guess that all depends on how one defines "high." For my money: MegaPath's prices are a good deal! I am perfectly willing to pay a premium price for a premium product.

MegaPath's mission, as it has been related to me, is to offer a superior product. At least in the past: the company has been completely uninterested in "getting down in the mud" with the low-cost (and even lower service levels!) xDSL providers that promise the world--and can't even deliver Rhode Island. I don't mean to come-across as completely un-feeling towards existing Phoenix customers. I know I would certainly feel a bit... concerned at the moment regarding the future. And I don't mean to slam Phoenix. They would appear to be one of the better xDSL providers. (They're #8, currently, on the DSLR "Good, Bad and Ugly" page.) But I'm really hoping MegaPath stays the MegaPath I have come to know and love . In short: MegaPath does not offer "residential" service. They offer Business and SOHO services. Personally: I would prefer to see it stay that way.

I take this position for a simple reason: experience. It has been my experience that business-class ISPs that dilute their product line with residential services eventually end-up with degraded business-class products. I've had it happen to me not less than three times with accounts at the office. I am presently considering switching providers at one of our Corporate offices partly for this reason. Again.

On the menu for a local eatery is the legend: "Good fish is not cheap. Cheap fish is not good." Just s/fish/DSL/.

--
Jim Seymour & Karel the Computer Cat

I agree With Jim... Megapath has higher prices, but in my opion.. (and probably many others..) You get an exceptionally high quality of service for that price..

I had ONE outage of of only 4 hours while On megapath... and they called me to tell me about it... How many other dsl providers would even get close to that level of service.. methinks very few.

I had IDSL with them, I moved, and my roomates retained it, and they don't mind paying the price, they get an exceptional level of service for that price..

I see megapath (and possibly Speakeasy..) as becoming the big "Independants.. (ie Non telco owned/ran) on the block soon... And perhaps telocity will eat someone soon, or get eaten.. but all of that is pure speculation at this point.

Good luck and warm fuzzy best wishes to everyone at phoenix/megapath.

I hope Megapath doesn’t plan on having the Phoenix customers ($39.00/mo) go through the same customer service/ Tech support as Megapath SOHO customers (who pay a 400% premium). This would cause even longer waits for Megapath SOHO customers (who pay for better customer service). Megapath's existing SOHO/Business customers need to be kept separate from their newly acquired Phoenix product or Megapath's service will degrade.

said by jimseymour:

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The big question from existing Phoenix customers has been: "Will I have to pay more

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No, pricing I believe would violate the contract and give us an out. The real question I have is will we be passed off to another ISP and at what terms (not necessarily price). I've had two outages, one 10 minute and the other about 40 minutes and **excellent overall service** (truly A++, administrative issues are another matter (C at best)). The question is if we are passed off to another company what will that service be like and will be be stuck with it for the remainder of our existing contracts.

Btw, when MegaPath starts paying me I'll consider it from their pov; for now I'm paying and I want good service (an old fashioned notion in this 'new economy'). That's all.

P.S: I repeat that it seems to me that good business practise would have been for at least one of the companies to email us with notice and some information about our present and future status.

Also, the PhoenixDSL site now takes bussiness service orders only so that doesn't speak to me of things staying exactly as they are now for the next two years or whatever till all existing contracts terminate.

i hope so. I've been through alot of bs finding a good dsl provider (phoenixdsl was the first i tried), and I'll be extremely disappointed if megapath's superior service starts to decline. =/

Mergers require months upon months of due diligence and then they may or may not happen overnight. That is why it is hard for any company merging to announce it before it actually happens.

Peter Roberts
Phoenix Networks, Founder
Telibrick Networks, President, Chairman, CEO & CVO www.telibrick.net

But it has happened and still no one has told us anything. Be honest, "Internet Companies" get cut a lot of slack because they are the in thing. This incident is no different than not telling us about the business with the news server or for that matter not giving out a simple straightforward reason for it rather than that PR canned response they gave to people who asked. Phoenix doesn't communicate with us. A lot of others do the same but that doesn't excuse it. It is not good practice to not communicate and it's not good practice to 'ghettoize' a class of clients (we residential users) which is exactly how all this feels.

From the PhoenixDSL side, I had excellent service and excellent quality connections. I haven't experienced the difference in a "premium" service and a "low-cost" service until my high service / low cost ISP was purchased by a "premium" provider. The new owners have clearly drawn the line. Residential Rate clients get no service and Business clients do get service. If Phoenix hadn't spoiled me prior to the merger I would have less of a problem.