Why Does It Still Take Press Attention For Comcast To Fix Obvious Screw Ups?
from the dysfunction-junction dept
Just about every year, like clockwork, Comcast will breathlessly insist that it has finally turned the corner when it comes to the company's historically abysmal customer service. In 2014, Comcast even went so far as to make a big deal about the fact it had hired a new "customer experience VP" who, the company promised, would finally get to the bottom of why Comcast has been ranked among the worst companies in any industry in America in terms of customer service and support. The end result: Comcast is still among the worst companies in America in terms of customer service and support.And, time and time again, Comcast will engage in some fairly obvious but incredible screw up that only gets fixed once the media gets involved. Case in point: Ars Technica tells the tale this week of a condo association in Sarasota, Florida that was just at the tail end of a 10 year bulk service contract with Comcast to provide cable service to the community. Once the contract ended, the association went ahead and cancelled service. But, Comcast being Comcast, the company kept billing the association $680 a month for several months, resulting in an "outstanding balance" of more than $2000.
As always, actually getting a refund from Comcast wound up being a Sisyphean feat.
When contacted, Comcast first claimed the association sent the cancellation center to the "wrong location." That's something the association denies, noting they sent the request to a Comcast office in Boca Raton that handles paperwork related to bulk contracts in the region (Comcast just mishandled the request). Subsequent efforts over the next few months included filing complaints with the FCC, filing complaints with the Florida government, and writing to Comcast CEO Brian Roberts. The association also tried to obtain mediation through the Citizen Dispute Settlement Program in Florida; a request Comcast never responded to.
Ultimately, like we've seen countless times before, Comcast only jumped to action once the media got involved:
Riggs Landing canceled the automatic bank payments, refused to pay for further months, and accused Comcast of illegally charging them twice for the same service, which Comcast denied. Riggs Landing and Comcast were at a stalemate for a few months, until Wiener contacted Ars in early September.It's just the same pattern over and over again. Comcast screws up, and instead of just admitting error and nipping the problem in the bud, the company doubles down -- putting the already incredibly annoyed customer through a gauntlet of dysfunction, compounding the public disdain for the company. Only once the threat of broad public exposure of its incompetence surfaces can Comcast be bothered to actually take a closer look at what happened.
“It just amazes me that for $2,000 plus, which has to be petty cash for them, that they would put up such resistance and alienate customers,” Wiener told Ars. Comcast is the United States' largest cable company and broadband provider.
Finally, after Ars contacted Comcast, the company agreed in mid-September to honor the April 1 cancellation date and provide a refund. Riggs Landing received the refund check of $2,034.31 on October 21.
The problem is there's no end in sight for this kind of market idiocy. Cable giants are consolidating at an incredible rate. And the nation's DSL providers are effectively refusing to upgrade huge swaths of their DSL networks to instead focus on getting into the content and media business. Add in an incoming regulatory regime that doesn't think broadband monopolies are real, and you have a recipe for a stronger cable monopoly, less competition, and less incentive than ever to fix this ongoing parade of dysfunction.
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
Filed Under: attention, customer service, press
Companies: comcast
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
Very Simple
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Government idiocy
"It's more profitable to do so"
Correct. And the reason it's profitable is because there's no effective market competition (consumer choice)-- thanks to dumb/corrupt politicians at federal/state/local levels.
TD doesn't get it, instead TD bemoans that "The problem is there's no end in sight for this kind of market idiocy".
There's NO 'market idiocy' here-- there's NO free market in operation here. It's standards 'government idiocy'.
Government directly prevents markets from operating efficiently. Emphasis upon "Press Attention" to fix Comcast shows a severe lack of economic understanding.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Government idiocy
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Government idiocy
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
Anyone at least posting a part of their idea, no matter how bullshit is still doing more work than your ignorant... "no one has a solution and I know before they post it that it not a good solution", either.
If all you got is "no one has a solution", then you are part of the problem and are in fact saying that you wish to perpetuate the existing situation, which is not surprising.
You, like most other Americans, find your miserable destinies on the roads you take to avoid them. The signs are plain as day, mine field ahead, bump in the road, bridge is out... but you just keep on flying down the road without a care...
to be so ignorant and blissful must be nice.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
"no one has a solution and I know before they post it that it not a good solution"
In addition, I do not find the following quote
"no one has a solution"
Perhaps you posted to the wrong thread? idk.
Then there is this:
"You, like most other Americans, ...down the road without a care... to be so ignorant and blissful must be nice."
Apparently you know everything about me, not sure how this occurred maybe you are with the nsa? On the other hand, you could just be full of shit. I will go with the latter.
btw, you got anything on the topic at hand? Maybe something about the free market and how it solves everything magically and does not need regulation because the free market is self regulating ... you know stupid shit like that - give it at try.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Government idiocy
But here goes... some portions of the infrastructure becomes public property, while other portions remains as business owned property. Example, the Telephone poles and the underground pipes that handle the cabling are public property. Telco's pay a maint fee for what they use. This allows them to all run their own wires, but not have to dig or stand up new pathways which can be regulated by government.
The telco can still in a free market offer whaterver level of service the local market is willing to bear as they see fit without interference from locally 'purchased' monopolies or other fiefdoms carved out by the FCC, ISP, or Local government corruption. Since they do in fact travel across state lines they can be regulated federally blocking cities from cunting up their less than intelligent citizens options.
In one sense, it is insane to continue to ask the most corruption institution mankind creates to manage shit for us, so in my opinion... we are getting exactly what we keep asking for!
We don't want a free market... so we do not have one.
We WANT corrupt as fuck regulation... so we get them, and then ask for more... TD fashion.
We enjoy the bribery and pork that our elected officials get us locally while incessantly bitching about the other team doing the same!
So there you have it... 'mere mortal' a system you wanted but say you don't and a product of your own efforts of which you deny to have participated in!
Enjoy your mortality...
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
All that does is shift the burden from telcos (who already handle this kind of thing) onto the government...and you say this will decrease government involvement in the market? What are you smoking, because I want some. How on earth would your proposed solution handle line hits, or collapsed conduit in a way that *removes* government meddling? You're in la-la land.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
You are a buffoon.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
The government already handles this sort of thing, "this sort of thing" being digging and rights of way (as for water mains, electricity, roads, etc.). Not all government involvement is "meddling"; they'd just be providing a wholesale service. What does "collapsed conduit" have to do with anything? It would be fixed, as a collapsed culvert would be fixed; and if somebody caused the collapse they'd be liable for costs, the same as if they'd damaged your private property.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
And sure, the government handles the digging rights, permitting, and all that, but who do you think pays to place the boxes and conduit the fiber lines go in? You stick the government in the last-mile business and then they have to go after every two-bit contractor that hits a line or crushes a conduit because they were too lazy to call in their dig sites? How does that make things more free market?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
They're already doing this. Sometimes people hit water, gas, or electric lines while digging (or private lines like phone or cable). If the government were burying fiber they'd probably be right near the water mains anyway, so as not to require digging two trenches, and you'd have bigger problems than the fiber being out.
The same way government roads enable free markets (taxis, trunk lines, delivery vehicles): build out a "common carrier"-type infrastructure which everyone needs in order to do business, but which is so costly (in money and also headaches like land acquisition) that a natural monopoly would form if left in private hands.
Basically everyone in the country requires telecommunications infrastructure. And we're actually paying for two such infrastructures (cable and POTS) but still getting poor service, with monopolies/duopolies expanding. It would be a better use of money to build a better infrastructure, once, correctly.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
It's regulatory capture, not regulator capture.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
And in the real world, there is no such thing as an unregulated free market anyway. The closest thing is probably the commodity exchanges and those are governed by rules and regulations enforced by the exchange themselves. Not laissez faire by any means.
The free market model fails if a party in a market knows more about an offering than the other parties in the market. This is why regulations about insider trading, product safety false advertising and corporate accounting exist: having valid information about a product or investment is just as essential to a free market as a wide range of suppliers and buyers to offer supply-side and demand-side competition.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
And how do you stop the first one or two into an area filling the ducts or poles on critical routes for linking where the customers are.? Both ducts and poles have a limited capacity for cables.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
That was just an example, and other models are possible. But if they legitimately fill the ducts, because customers choose that provider willingly, build more ducts as needed (it should be done before they reach capacity, really). Maybe temporarily tunnel traffic to ISP(s) over a city-owned network, until the ISP(s) can build again. If someone's buying all the ducts just to crush a competitor, anti-trust laws can cover that.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
Few people would suggest getting rid of government regulation entirely (even libertarians have contract law, and the interpretion and enforcement of such is a form of government regulation). The point is to replace complicated and onerous regulation with something that doesn't require the government to micromanage, and doesn't require small businesses to hire lawyers and lobbyists.
I'm not proposing fixing these problems before they happen. In areas with real competition, particularly where third-party providers can use existing infrastructure, we haven't seen anything too egregious—nobody blocking a popular website outright for example. We'd still have something like the FTC looking into false advertising to make sure people wouldn't be sold an "internet" connection and then be surprised it's not really the full internet.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
Umm, the entire fight about the one touch make ready legislation is the telephone poles **are not** public property. They are owned by the telcos. Who make it as difficult as possible for a potential competitor to use them.
If you're suggesting that the government should use eminent domain to forcibly purchase vital public resources to allow competition, then I agree. Combine that with one touch make ready rules and competition becomes possible.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
The example may have been saying that they should be public property, perhaps via eminent domain or by building more poles and pipes. Eminent domain is likely cheaper and faster, but governments build and rebuild infrastructure all the time and could start oppurtunistically adding fiber (and some have, which is where the municipal broadband fights come from).
Another option is to make use of existing municipal infrastructure, like by running fiber through water/sewer pipes (it's not bothered much by water, and people have been working on devices to push it through existing pipes).
People sometimes complain about the speed of government. "One touch make ready"-type rules for government-owned infrastructure would address that by letting ISPs sidestep them when necessary.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Government idiocy
If that's the correct interpretation, then public-property poles etc. wouldn't fix the problem.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Government idiocy
Who said anything about a complete absense of regulation? The complaint was about "dumb/corrupt politicians"—so maybe about counterproductive/ineffective regulation, or regulation that's so complicated only huge companies can manage it.
There's going to be some regulation of anything involving public land, but it doesn't have to be a lot. See Ammon's municipal fiber network for example—the city's in charge of digging, which cities are generally good at, but the service providers are private and there's actual competition. An alternate model I've seen suggested is for cities to have dark fiber from every home to various locations where ISPs can lease space—the city doesn't own any equipment in this model, just fibre and conduit.
If you ever have a home built for you, be sure to ask the builder about their fiber plans. If enough people ask, they might have to actually do something to remain competitive.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Government idiocy
--
If you hate COMCAST or your cable company — yes, blame it on the government (to simplify a half-century of history).
At the founding days of the cable industry, local governments mistakenly insisted that cable TV was a “natural monopoly” that must be regulated like telephone service. Selection of government-approved cable operator was a political one, with the most flattering supplicant winning the monopolistic right from city councils to string wire on utility poles and cross right-of-ways to sell cable service. Local politicians collected big franchise fees from the cable companies, shook them down for sweeteners like municipal channels and public access studios, regulated their rates, and required the operators to wire all if not most of their jurisdiction.
Of course, cable TV wasn’t a natural-monopoly (nor were telephones)-- but a government-made monopoly. By the time Congress and the courts reduced the power of local governments to regulate cable in the 1980s & 1990s, the damage was done. Sure, new cable operators could apply to compete, but they still had to run the vast regulatory maze and face well-entrenched government-made monopolists. In most cases, the only new entrants were previous telephone service monopolists ... with deep pockets and who knew how to play the regulatory game, such as Verizon (FIOS) and AT&T.
By legislating local cable monopolies, government created national oligopolies like COMCAST & Time Warner Cable... grew to market dominance by purchasing existing franchises, market by market. Such a quick, massive consolidation would not have been possible if regulators had pursued policies easing the way for new entrants.
In the cable industry, the regulatory scheme has been captured by the regulated, which is a sad but common and predictable event.
__
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Government idiocy
Don't pretend it's anything but anarchy.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Government idiocy
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Very Simple
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
No matter how inconvenient it may seem, paying "manually" ensures you don't have to ask for a refund.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Why ask why?
Simple. Because we are a bunch of dicks who like money not customers.
See? Simple.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
AT&T does this as well
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: AT&T does this as well
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
get ready for it to get much, much worse.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
"We don't care. We don't have to. We're the cable company."
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Why?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
based on the trend...
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: based on the trend...
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Not Just Any Old Press Attention, But ...
... mainstream Press attention? You know, the same mainstream Press that gets accused of having a “liberal bias”?
Does exposing corporate malfeasance like this count towards or against that “liberal bias”?
Answers on a postcard, please.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Not Just Any Old Press Attention, But ...
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Regulation? Anti-trust laws? A review is in order.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Don't worry I'm sure the new FCC will fix this...
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
education
Beylikdüzü Dünya Etüt Merkezi Beylikdüzü’nde butik eğitim, bire bir özel ders merkezi, etüt merkezi, eğitim koçluğu, Butik Dersane hizmetleri veren profesyonel bir eğitim kurumudur. 2011 yılından beri uzman eğitimcilerle hizmet veren kurumumuz her sene başarılarına yenilerini katmaktadır.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Özel Ders
Beylikdüzü Dünya Etüt Merkezi Beylikdüzü’nde butik eğitim, bire bir özel ders merkezi, etüt merkezi, eğitim koçluğu, Butik Dersane hizmetleri veren profesyonel bir eğitim kurumudur. 2011 yılından beri uzman eğitimcilerle hizmet veren kurumumuz her sene başarılarına yenilerini katmaktadır.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Beylikdüzü Matematik Özel Ders
Bu konuda en iyi olduğuna inandığım Beylikdüzü Özel Ders bire bir özel derslerini branşlarında uzmanlaşmış öğretmen kadrosu ile yıllardır başarılı bir şekilde vermektedir. Bu birebir özel Dersler sonunda öğrenci hem başarıyı yakalar. Hem de kendine olan güveni artar.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Beylikdüzü Teog Kursu
Yaz Dönemi TEOG Kursu 21 Mayıs 2017 ile 1 Ağustos 2017 tarihleri arasında gelecek yıl 8. sınıfta okuyacak öğrenciler için Yaz Dönemi TEOG Kurs Programı erken kayıtlarımız başlamıştır. 1.Teog sınavı (2017 Kasım ayında) konularının tamamını yaz döneminde bitirerek öğrencilerimizin yeni dönemde psikolojik olarak hazır olmasını sağlamak ve Teog sınavı yarışında diğer öğrencilere göre daha avantajlı olması sağlanır.Öğrencilerimiz yaz kursu ile 1.TEOG konularını bitirdiğinden eylül ayından itibaren 1.TEOG konularıyla ilgili farklı kaynaklardan soru çözme ve pratik yapma, okulda öğretmeninin 1.Teog konularını anlatmasını beklemeden soru eksiğini giderme ve daha fazla sayıda kaynak bitirme fırsatı olacaktır
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Beylikdüzü YGS Kursu
Yaz Dönemi YGS Kursu 20 Mayıs 2017 - 05 Ağustos 2017 tarihleri arasında önümüzdeki yıl 12. sınıfta okuyacak öğrencilerimiz için YGS Kurs Programı planladık.YGS (Mart 2018) konularının tamamını yaz döneminde bitirerek öğrencimizin yeni eğitim-öğretim dönemine psikolojik ve teknik olarak hazır ve sınav yarışına daha avantajlı başlamasını sağlamak istiyoruz.Öğrencimiz yaz döneminde YGS konularını bitirdiği için Eylülden itibaren YGS konularıyla ilgili farklı kaynaklardan bireysel olarak soru çözme ve pratik yapma, aynı zamanda LYS ye daha fazla zaman ayırma ve çok sayıda kaynak bitirme fırsatını yakalayacaktır.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Beylikdüzü Matematik Kursu
Beylikdüzü Matematik Kursu
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
YDS Ders Notlari
yds sınavında online eğitimde tek adres
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Beylikdüzü Cam Balkon
Beylikdüzü Cam Balkon, yaz ve kış aylarında balkonların özelliğini kaybetmeden şık bir görüntü sağlayan yeni ve estetik bir sistemdir. 1 Cam Balkon kullanımı kolay, güvenlik açısından oldukça sağlam, temizlik açışından da işinizi kolaylaştırmaktadır. Cam Balkon özellikle tozdan, topraktan ,yağmurdan, çamurdan,kışın soğuğu gibi sıkıntılardan sizi kurtaracaktır. Beylikdüzü Cam Balkon sistemi balkonların estetiği bozmadan sıcak bir görüntüye kavuşmanızı sağlar.
Katlanır Cam Balkon Yaşamınızı Değiştirir.
Cam Balkon işçilik ve kullanılan ürünün kalitesi büyük önem arzeder. 1 Cam Balkon yaptıracak tüketicilerin cam balkon yaptırmadan önce çok iyi araştırma yapmalarını öneriyoruz
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Promosyon kalem ve Crciket çakmak
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Promosyon kalem ve Crciket çakmak
Kral Promosyon
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Büyükçekmece Cam Balkon
Büyükçekmece Cam Balkon, yaz ve kış aylarında balkonların özelliğini kaybetmeden şık bir görüntü sağlayan yeni ve estetik bir sistemdir. 1 Cam Balkon kullanımı kolay, güvenlik açısından oldukça sağlam, temizlik açışından da işinizi kolaylaştırmaktadır. Cam Balkon özellikle tozdan, topraktan ,yağmurdan, çamurdan,kışın soğuğu gibi sıkıntılardan sizi kurtaracaktır. Büyükçekmece Cam Balkon sistemi balkonların estetiği bozmadan sıcak bir görüntüye kavuşmanızı sağlar. Cam Balkon işçilik ve kullanılan ürünün kalitesi büyük önem arzeder. Cam balkon yaptıracak tüketicilerin cam balkon yaptırmadan önce çok iyi araştırma yapmalarını öneriyoruz.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Bahçeşehir Cam Balkon
Bahçeşehir Cam Balkon, yaz ve kış aylarında balkonların özelliğini kaybetmeden şık bir görüntü sağlayan yeni ve estetik bir sistemdir. 1 Cam Balkon kullanımı kolay, güvenlik açısından oldukça sağlam, temizlik açışından da işinizi kolaylaştırmaktadır. Cam Balkon özellikle tozdan, topraktan ,yağmurdan, çamurdan,kışın soğuğu gibi sıkıntılardan sizi kurtaracaktır. Bahçeşehir Cam Balkon sistemi balkonların estetiği bozmadan sıcak bir görüntüye kavuşmanızı sağlar. Cam Balkon işçilik ve kullanılan ürünün kalitesi büyük önem arzeder. Cam balkon yaptıracak tüketicilerin cam balkon yaptırmadan önce çok iyi araştırma yapmalarını öneriyoruz.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Beylikdüzü Sineklik
Tüm PVC pencere sistemlerine uyumlu Beylikdüzü Plise Sineklik Sistemi hem pencerelere hem de kapılara olabilecek şekilde geliştirilmiştir. Beylikdüzü Plise Sineklik Sistemi, hem kanat olarak açılma ve gerekirse takılıp çıkarılabilme özelliklerini barındıran menteşeli ya da sabit kullanım kolaylıklarına sahiptir. Montajı oldukça kolaydır. Yıkanarak veya silinerek kolayca temizlenebilir. Düşey olarak hareket eden Stor Sineklik ise yer kayıplarını ortadan kaldırır ve her türlü pencerelere uygulanabilir. Sürme Serilerinin dış yüzünde yatay olarak hareket eden Sürme Sineklik, kapı ve pencerelerin açıldığı konuma göre ray içinde kaydırılarak, kullanımda kolaylık ve rahatlık sağlamaktadır.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Ahmet Ali Aygün
Ahmet Ali Aygün
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
bizimkentte matematik özel ders veren en iyi kurum.
Bu konuda en iyi olduğuna inandığım Bizimkent Matematik Özel Ders bire bir özel derslerini branşlarında uzmanlaşmış öğretmen kadrosu ile yıllardır başarılı bir şekilde vermektedir. Bu birebir özel Dersler sonunda öğrenci hem başarıyı yakalar. Hem de kendine olan güveni artar.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: bizimkentte matematik özel ders veren en iyi kurum.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]