Overselling Cheap DSL?
from the promises,-promises,-promises dept
As the telcos continue their strategy of cheap promotional pricing for DSL, News.com is suggesting that they can't actually handle the demand. It's unclear how widespread the issue is, but Verizon admits that it's stopped taking orders in some areas, while AT&T says they're doing just fine. While the article notes that one person they spoke to decided to go with much more expensive cable modem service, it seems unlikely that too many people would do that -- since cable is still much more expensive. So, the downside for most telcos is fairly minimal, since there still really isn't much competition at that price level.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
Wait a sec.///
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Wait a sec.///
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Wait a sec.///
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Wait a sec.///
I wouldn't put cable down so much, it's competitive in its own ways at least in some markets.
Though I'd pay even more for good upstream...
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Here's a recent experience
First, they shipped the wrong install kit (no router). I called and had to wade through a very unfriendly AVR system to finally talk to the first of three people. It seems that even though they *offer* naked DSL (known to them as a "dry loop order"), they don't sell very much of it, so I kept getting transferred to departments that couldn't handle my request. Finally, I got someone who apologized and promised to overnight the right install kit.
Next day, no kit. Back to the AVR. Lather, rinse, repeat for two days. On the third day's call, the AVR status report tells me my heat-up date has been pushed back a month. I got pissed and called RoadRunner. When I finally got through to a cancel-capable human at Verizon, he admitted that the DSLAM in my CO was full (though he couched it in moron-friendly terms), and they pushed my date back in the hope that someone would cancel and free up a slot. So *that's* why the website couldn't qualify my address!
What frosted me the most is that this information should have been available to the first-echelon order taker. If they'd been up front about their capacity, I would have still gone to cable, but I wouldn't have been pissed off and I would have had a net connection a week earlier than I finally did.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Here's a recent experience
In short, they disconnected me and then sold MY slot to someone else.
Talk about screwing a consumer to make a buck, huh?
[ link to this | view in thread ]
DSL vs cable
[ link to this | view in thread ]
DSL vs cable
[ link to this | view in thread ]