Triple Play Striking Out With Some Consumers
from the killing-the-golden-goose dept
In recent years, the key to both the cable companies' and the telcos' strategy has been to offer the so-called triple play (Data, Video, Voice) to consumers. The assumption has been that consumers want all of these services on one bill, and if they can snag a discount for getting them bundled together that's even better. One problem with this scenario is that video and voice are bound to become mere subsets of data, so the idea of charging for all three may be difficult as competitors enter the ring. Another problem is that consumers may not even want the bundled product. Users are finding that instead of getting discounts, bills have become more confusing, with providers getting more clever about tacking on surprise charges. Also, it's difficult to just switch out one part of the bill to a competing company when a better deal presents itself. The telcos love the lock in, but it makes consumers think twice before subscribing to a bundled package. Even the selling point of a unified bill may lose its appeal, as online bill pay and auto withdrawal makes check writing obsolete. A bundled product can work if consumers actually get a better deal, and operators use it to reduce churn. But if they view bundles as a way to milk more money out of captive consumers, they risk killing the strategy they've invested so much in.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.
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Have I ever told you...
Keep up the good work.
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Fuk em all I say.
I can live with my 1200 baud modem.
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Since I don't watch much TV, I would much rather skip the extended cable TV and just pay for internet and voip, but they don;t really allow that... no basic cable service available with those other things, higher costs, etc.
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bundled triple play
Of course they do....and even if you gt a good deal for let'ds say, the first six months, after that, the charges are bound to rise...and rise....and rise..... and there you are, locked in.
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Re: Have I ever told you...
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Bundles
Thankfully I only pay for $15 DSL and $.10 a min landline (I don't use it I just use my cell phone) and I paid nothing for my wire hanger for the tv antenna!!!
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We'll see...
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Re:
Am I dumb or isnt that the same thing said a different way? I think you confused yourself.
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Re: We'll see...
I have FiOS internet service, it's great. 3 times the bandwidth that comcast provides for cheaper! On top of that, it's running on fiber so the latency is real low.
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Bundles suck
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Re: Six and 1/2
Not if it's a baker's dozen!
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Don't forget - no 911!
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Use VOIP
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Home town Cable Companies ROCK!!
Verizon, at least in this area, does not yet provide the services seen in larger cities, therefore, the only bundles they have are for phone and DSL nothing else. FIOS is not available here yet so there is no bundle as mentioned in the article. Verizon just sucks anyway, especially around here cuz they know they have a stranglehold on the area and they know that we(the customers) can do nothing about it. Except for those of us with reliable cable connections that use Vonage, Packet8, etc.
You all can have the mainstream providers. I'll take the local folks any day of the week. I have not had any downtime since I signed up last August. If I do have a problem, a knowledgeable tech that speaks english (no hard-to-understand techs! :-) ) gets back to me within an hour and tells me what my problem is and also provides me with a resolution. On top of all this first-class customer service, the QOS and sheer speed is unbelievable!! Translation..... If you have the ability to switch to someone other than mainstream, DO IT!!! :-)
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Home town Cable Companies ROCK!!
Verizon, at least in this area, does not yet provide the services seen in larger cities, therefore, the only bundles they have are for phone and DSL nothing else. FIOS is not available here yet so there is no bundle as mentioned in the article. Verizon just sucks anyway, especially around here cuz they know they have a stranglehold on the area and they know that we(the customers) can do nothing about it. Except for those of us with reliable cable connections that use Vonage, Packet8, etc.
You all can have the mainstream providers. I'll take the local folks any day of the week. I have not had any downtime since I signed up last August. If I do have a problem, a knowledgeable tech that speaks english (no hard-to-understand techs! :-) ) gets back to me within an hour and tells me what my problem is and also provides me with a resolution. On top of all this first-class customer service, the QOS and sheer speed is unbelievable!! Translation..... If you have the ability to switch to someone other than mainstream, DO IT!!! :-)
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double posted
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I prefer a simple connection...
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Less for More $$$
I pay ~$30 (with taxes, $25 without taxes) for local phone service.
Verizon keeps hounding me to signup for:
Local service+Bundled features+Long Distance=$30
So what your thinking your adding/getting "features" and a simple long distance plan for and extra "$5" a month in reality your getting billed for:
$25 Local service
$30 Features
$5 Long Distance
-------------------------
$60 a month bill
Cable/phone/whatever companys NEVER offer anything that ends up costing YOU LESS MONEY.
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Better to stay away from bundled
All bundling does is have you pay more for services you don't need or want. Why pay for something if your never going to use it? The new company Enbarq, the landline business that Sprint spun off, I hope will make some changes.
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real triple play for less than 30$/month
I just love it!
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Bundled = Nope
Vonage............$27.00 incl tax.
Netflix..............$18.00 incl tax.
Rabbit Ears........$12.00 incl tax.
Hey loook! It's a bundle package under $100!
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triple plays in nj and ny
sounds like FIOS is the way to go when it's available in your neighborhood. Too bad I live so far out that it will be 2020 by the time I get it.
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Re: Use VOIP
Sally
Use VOIP by Allen on Mar 23rd, 2006 @ 8:33am
I think you have to really lack savvy as a consumer if you subscribe these packages. My most expensive bill is with my basic cable and internet are about $78/mo. I'm using Sunrocket VOIP, which I paid $199 for 1 yr up front. I could go DSL to be cheaper, but cable is much faster in my experience.
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Verizon Triple Play
Doesn't sound bad to me. (that includes taxes and fees)Considering when you add up by bills from DirecTV, AT&T, plus Verizon's DSL and local phone, I'm saving about $25 a month!
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Re: Verizon Triple Play
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Re: Re: Verizon Triple Play
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triple play from Verizon
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Re: We'll see...
I had FIOS installed Dec 7, and received my first bill on Dec 16. The total bill came to $169.24.
1.The bill is organized in a fashion to confuse and mystify even the most savvy consumer.
2.They added charges for services I never ordered.
3.They apply credits in many different areas which can confuse the consumer.
4.They advertise the triple play for $94.99. Nowhere on the bill does it say $94.99.
5.The phone system comes activated with special features (BUSY REDIAL) which they bill extra and call it, a PAY PER USE charge.
6.They say they are comparable to Cablevision Optimum, but there are features that you must pay for such as directory assistance.
I hope this will help any prospective consumers..
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Triple Play Woes
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High speed do or dont?
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High speed do or dont?
Those that need fios which hands down is the fastest speed internet out here today are the techs and graphics people either for pleasure (gamers) and work (such as photographers and video goers) and they can bundle up and get their phone and now tv from the same source, prices are competitive for you have more than 1 company handing out fiber optics service.
That being said My Phone bill is anywhere from 40 to 90 a month and basic digital cable with all hbo chanells is 90 a month and my interent is 33 a month so if you do the math it is cheaper to bundle, and all of these companies charge a lot for little and little for a lot more if you look at the costs/over the pkgs offered.
Verizon has just put fios in my neighborhod 95 a month gets me phone local and long distance, hd signal, 220 or 250 chanells basic, and real high speed internet, again this is the basic. What they give you is a wireless router, set top boxes, a battery backup with the fios box, a free 19" hdtv or $200 best buy gift card, and that is all inclided in the installation which is about 6 to 8 hrs with 1 or 2 guys doing the install.
Like they say "the art of the deal is in the negotiation"
and people today forget to negotiate or just plain forgot how to but i got a lot asking and pushing a lot to get where i want to.
Remember almost all of us have to pay taxes and we cant change that but we can change other things.
Something to think about !!!!
just my 2cents
Ed
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Comcast TriplePlay
I had Dish, SBC Land Line, SBC DSL. I waited 2 years for SBC to enable DSL in my subdivision. And then I could only get 384 Mbps. Then my Dish TV stopped working because the trees had overgrown my only view to the Satellites. (I live in a heavly wooded area)
I had gotten flyers in the mail from Comcast saying they had Internet access in my area and I jumped on it. I dumped SBC (now AT&T) and Satellite and Got the TriplePlay.
I was paying around $70 for Land Line & DSL, no long distance calling, and $70 for Satellite for around $140 a month total.
I am paying around $150 a month for Comcast TriplePlay. With that I got two HD recievers and two SD recievers. Fast Internet Access and VOIP full service with more features than I had before such as long distance and caller ID.
So far I am happy with Comcast TriplePlay and $150 a month is good since there is no competition that can touch the cost in my area.
One Con to using Comcast: The support, if or when you need it. Luckly, I have only had to call once.
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Re: High speed do or dont?
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FIOS ripoff
FIOS was advertised at $99 but my last two bills have been over $150!!!
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High Expectations
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you all suck dick fucking losers, i think you should all just grow the hell up.
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