telco

Promises Unkept

July 12, 2015

As the mergers (AT&T/DirecTV and Charter-TWC-BrightHouse) are coming under review at both the Dept. of Justice and the FCC, the propaganda machines are full swing - especially by AT&T which has a formula for getting its way at the FCC.

BGR has a headline - AT&T's Latest Promise to FCC in Effort to Win DirecTV Merger Approval Reeks of Desperation - that is interesting, except it isn't desperation. This is the AT&T formula for mergers. Make Promises that you will never keep.

Posted in FCC, broadband, mergers, telco

Analysts' Views: Part 1

July 7, 2015

Reading Jeff Kagan's take on the Big 3 Telcos - Ma Bell, Pa Bell and C-Link - makes me think that analysts only read press releases. Or just talk to the PR department.

In that piece, Kagan says he is talking about wireline, but his view of AT&T is based almost entirely on mobility. To be fair, most of Ma Bell's attention is cellular - even in Mexico and Latin America it is all cellular all the time.

Posted in cellular, mobile, telco, wireline

The Trend Toward Global Expansion

June 9, 2015

We are seeing an interesting trend. The ILECs are going global. AT&T, Verizon and CenturyLink are looking to other global markets to make up for a decline in revenue in the US.

AT&T made acquisitions in cellular in LATAM.

Posted in cableco, cellular, smb, telco

3 Cable Stories That Are Good Reads

June 2, 2015

As I wrote previously, our industry hasn't really applied the technology that we push on our customers. Don't you ever wonder Why Your Cable Company Doesn't Always Know If Your New Address Gets Service?

One reason is simple data logic. "That database suffers from the classic, timeless data-management problem of "garbage-in, garbage-out" -- they can't give accurate info if they don't get it to begin with.

Posted in FCC, Internet, cableco, telco

Is It Just Me Or Is It Getting Worse?

May 5, 2015

Posted in telco

A TWC Story

May 1, 2015

A reader sent me a story about the difficulty of adding the voice mobility package to the company's TWCBC voice service. "Over the past 7 days, I have put in 3-4 hours in working trying to get this simple feature added and have spoken with 3 sales reps, a retention rep, and several others in other departments." Frustration with the process and the company is natural in telecom. This isn't TV any more. But then that is why TWC was for sale.

Posted in agents, cableco, telco, telecommunications

The Race to Gigabit is About Business

April 15, 2015

The cable companies racing to Gigabit networks isn't about delivering ultra-fast broadband to consumers. The Gigabit announcements get them good PR in DC, where the largest MSOs are waiting for approval for acquisitions (Comcast for TWC; Charter for Bright House). Comcast, as the largest MSO, has a poor reputation for customer service and for Net Neutrality. The Comcast-Verizon squeeze on Netflix was probably the number 1 reason the FCC received millions of public comments and laid down the law.

Posted in CLEC, ISP, broadband, cableco, fiber, telco

What Do You Know About Global Capacity?

March 10, 2015

Posted in CLEC, telco

No Magic in Telco

February 27, 2015

GENBAND and fring are looking to take some of the revenue back from OTT apps by creating an alliance for global service providers. I think they are trying to close the barn door long after the animals are gone, but, hey, it makes the news. Most consumer behavior - especially on devices - centers on user experience. Carriers suck at UX.

Posted in CLEC, Marketing, apps, technology, telco, video

Cable Will Win

February 16, 2015

The Telecompetitor spends a lot of space on Chattanooga's muni network - as if it was the perfect model for a Gigabit network. Two problems with it: (1) it cost taxpayers literally millions of dollars via bonds and federal grants and (2) very few people buy Gigabit services from them. It is rare that a muni network will do well. UTOPIA, Wilson's Greenlight, a couple in Florida, ECB-Chatt and Lafayette's LUS are the ones I paid attention to over the years.

Posted in CLEC, broadband, cableco, fiber, telco, wireline

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