WHO'S THE TELCO NOW? :huh:
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anon @ 30th Jul 12:10PM:
I just canceled my Comcast service...
I'm a trend-setter: they'll take a hit next quarter. :)
You can get a landline and long-distance now for less than half of what Comcast wants for CDV.
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anon @ 30th Jul 12:14PM:
Re: So...
you cant say fios or uverse is great to. fios cant bill right and have a hard time putting promos on the accounts. uverse really suck. my friend had it for one week then canceled it. when he turned on his tv his internet speed drop by half. that is why happens when you share bandwidth. he also has three hd tvs witch you cant watch at once.
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moonpuppy @ 30th Jul 12:16PM:
Re: yeah, right
said by hobgoblin :said by hopeflicker :
Do you really believe what these companies spew in their PR releases?
Yes I do mostly when it relates to figures.
Hob
Figures don't lie but you can lie with figures.
;)
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anon @ 30th Jul 12:21PM:
Re: I just canceled my Comcast service...
Where? What company? What technology? In otherwords, I call BS!
Cheapest Verizon landline package I found was $29.99 for unlimited calls to US/Canada and barely had any bells and whistles (3-way, CW, CW-CID, CID). Comcast charges $39.99, $34.99 if you have TV service, and isn't lacking on any feature. My Verizon bill totaled $52.97 after taxes and fees. My Comcast phone bill totaled $41.97 after taxes and fees. Yep, your right, looks like Verizon is half price to me! :uhh:
"Telco" is dead, it will just take a few more years before this website catches up. They are all providers and are now competing on all three fronts: Phone, Data, TV.
Fios is an attractive competitor when it comes to data, but their TV and phone offerings are horrid. I can't find a Fios package that beats Comcast's Premium Tripple Play for TV offerings. I have Comcast TV and Phone, Fios internet and TV. Mixing up packages gave me the most for a few dollars more than going all with one or the other.
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moonpuppy @ 30th Jul 12:22PM:
Re: Comments?
said by Rick :
IMHO..I wouldn't be too eager to sing the praises of the cost of FIOS. If anything, Verizon is going to have a lot of heat on them to raise prices MORE than Comcast ever will.
Why? Because # 1..Fios is SO expensive to rollout.
#2..so many of their customers are coming from DSL..meaning they're cannibalizing their own customer base. And
#3...They're losing landlines left and right.
There is an amazing amount of pressure on Verizon to make Fios work. And while the price might be competitive now..it's that way because they have no other choice. I ask you though..how many more landlines and dsl customers do they lose before they can simply no longer subsidize fios at current prices?
To sum it up..I think the REAL risk in future price increases is with Verizon.
In that regard..AT&T probably does have it right with Uverse..with it not being as costly.
The problem with that though is it technologically enough to withstand what Comcast is throwing at them?
Time will tell.
DOCSIS 3.0 is not cheap either and that further puts pressure on Comcast to up their prices.
Landlines are the bread and butter of telcos because while the basic rate is regulated, all the additions like caller ID, etc. are cash cows. Those start going going down in numbers, then you have a problem.
Comcast raises its rates too on TV due to programming costs which both sides will incur. I have already spoken to this issue many times and have said the cable companies and telcos need to grow some balls and take the issue to the subscribers. Watch how fast the tables turn on the content providers when they are held responsible for the extra money customers have to pay.
FIOS has one advantage in that fiber is already at the home so upgrading will be cheaper in the future. Fibet to the node can only go so far and we all know bandwidth is being used up by HDTV and internet.
As you said, time will tell but you also have to take into account that Verizon has a smaller footprint right now that will continue to grow.
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openbox9 @ 30th Jul 12:23PM:
Re: yeah, right
When it involves an earnings report and the SEC, yes!
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ptrowski @ 30th Jul 12:23PM:
Re: I just canceled my Comcast service...
What is the cost of CDV without the TV service, etc.
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mglunt @ 30th Jul 12:30PM:
Re: Comments?
I looked into the Comcast triple play and after the contract is up, it jumps to about $140+ in my area (not including boxes). Fewer channels are included in their base triple play package as well.
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MOTO6809 @ 30th Jul 12:57PM:
Re: Comments?
said by moonpuppy :said by Rick :
IMHO..I wouldn't be too eager to sing the praises of the cost of FIOS. If anything, Verizon is going to have a lot of heat on them to raise prices MORE than Comcast ever will.
Why? Because # 1..Fios is SO expensive to rollout.
#2..so many of their customers are coming from DSL..meaning they're cannibalizing their own customer base. And
#3...They're losing landlines left and right.
There is an amazing amount of pressure on Verizon to make Fios work. And while the price might be competitive now..it's that way because they have no other choice. I ask you though..how many more landlines and dsl customers do they lose before they can simply no longer subsidize fios at current prices?
To sum it up..I think the REAL risk in future price increases is with Verizon.
In that regard..AT&T probably does have it right with Uverse..with it not being as costly.
The problem with that though is it technologically enough to withstand what Comcast is throwing at them?
Time will tell.
DOCSIS 3.0 is not cheap either and that further puts pressure on Comcast to up their prices.
Landlines are the bread and butter of telcos because while the basic rate is regulated, all the additions like caller ID, etc. are cash cows. Those start going going down in numbers, then you have a problem.
Comcast raises its rates too on TV due to programming costs which both sides will incur. I have already spoken to this issue many times and have said the cable companies and telcos need to grow some balls and take the issue to the subscribers. Watch how fast the tables turn on the content providers when they are held responsible for the extra money customers have to pay.
FIOS has one advantage in that fiber is already at the home so upgrading will be cheaper in the future. Fibet to the node can only go so far and we all know bandwidth is being used up by HDTV and internet.
As you said, time will tell but you also have to take into account that Verizon has a smaller footprint right now that will continue to grow.
DOCSIS3 is expensive, however it's much cheaper than building an entire system. It can also be deployed much quicker and on an as needed basis.
Your right FIOS is great because it goes to the house, but cable wouldn't have to do that since they are using coax. They could get away from running fiber to the house by deploying fiber to feeder. Basically after the node you only feed tap strings, at that point going out to 3ghz+ is much easier.
On the other hand if they still had concerns about coax, they could use the RF over glass(RFOG)solution. That could use existing fiber thats being used for HFC plant to deploy it and also keep the existing headend.
Cable has many option to compete with telco's without the need to spend as much as them.
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mikepd @ 30th Jul 12:59PM:
Re: Comments?
Verizon's cost to install FIOS is going down not up:
»telephonyonline.com/home/news/ve···_092706/
They are almost done wiring up Florida as I got notice a couple of week ago that the contractor would be along to mark off the utilities prior to the burial of the underground fiber and that work has just been completed.
Here is where they stand in Florida, along with speed offerings and prices:
»www.foxbusiness.com/story/market···ridians/
I currently have Brighthouse 7/512 as well as 3/768 Verizon DSL on a dual WAN router since both the wife and I use the Internet for academic research and need redundancy in case one ISP goes down.
We still have not decided whether we will keep cable or go with two ONTs even though by doing that we lose redundancy.
Both DSL and cable have been reliable but the 20/20 speed for a reasonable price is very tempting.
As for technology updates, Verizon can go to GPON simply by changing out the electronics which is a cost-effective solution and will not require a major overhaul of the network.
--
Always Reach Beyond Your Grasp
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Rick @ 30th Jul 01:11PM:
Re: Comments?
As you mention, docsis 3.0 is not only much cheaper..but time is a huge factor in all of this.
Imagine Comcast having a docsis 3.0 network all but finished by the end of 2009, while Verizon is struggling to wire manhattan by 2014 and other places by...??? who knows when?
By then, a fios rollout could be perceived as a non event if comcast is sailing along at 50Mb + speeds in many areas that many years before them.
And again, people are forgetting some key points. All the while..verizon could be losing landlines bigtime..losing dsl customers bigtime..while spending huge bucks on fios. This is a recipe for them to have to charge more for fios.
We'll see how it goes but my early estimation is..
Fios = Rambus and
Docsis 3.0 = DDR.
And we all know who won that race.
--
The Coyote captured the RR! Roadrunner Rick is now Comcastic!
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Cheese @ 30th Jul 01:20PM:
Re: So...
said by johndoe303 :no, this is an article about Comcast :p You can look forward to caps and all the usual crap they pull. Your only hope in a speed increase is to live in an area with FiOS or U-Verse. Comcast is all about giving as little service as possible for as much money as they can extract. You gotta give them credit, they're good at big business. They are big business. :hmm:
"Finishing second in the Worst Company In America contest hasn't slowed down Comcast's money making machine."
Source: »
consumerist.com/5030893/ They upgraded my upload to 2mbps and no other competition except Embarq.
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TK Junk Mail @ 30th Jul 01:24PM:
Qtrly presentation slides in PDF format
Qtrly presentation:
»media.corporate-ir.net/media_fil···des1.pdf
Earnings tables:
»media.corporate-ir.net/media_fil···Q208.htm
Good news for investors:
[att=1]
[att=2]
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Cheese @ 30th Jul 01:28PM:
Re: Comcast offerings?
No 16/2 here either.
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anon @ 30th Jul 01:41PM:
Re: I just canceled my Comcast service...
said by dtv09 :
Where? What company? What technology? In otherwords, I call BS!
Fios is an attractive competitor when it comes to data, but their TV and phone offerings are horrid. I can't find a Fios package that beats Comcast's Premium Tripple Play for TV offerings. I have Comcast TV and Phone, Fios internet and TV. Mixing up packages gave me the most for a few dollars more than going all with one or the other.
Who wants tripple play? Not me. Fios' TV picture quality and channel selection is much better than Comcast's soft, marginal HD offerings. I guess it's all about what you want. I prefer quality service, not silly bundles.
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anon @ 30th Jul 01:54PM:
Re: I just canceled my Comcast service...
Comcast charges $33/mo for CDV if you get their triple-play bundle, but that's only for the first year, after which it goes up to--what is it now?--$39 (though you could probably haggle yourself back to triple-play prices if you tell them you're going to leave them for someone else). If you don't need long-distance, then you could get their local-only service for $25 (if you bundle it with their Internet service, HSI or LSI). You also have to pay $3/mo to lease their eMTA. For the sake of argument, I'll use the $25: $25 + $3 = $28/mo.
A no-frills landline from Verizon costs under $11/mo ($6 for the line, the rest in taxes/fees). Pick a long-distance provider that doesn't charge you anything unless you actually use their service. (Having a Verizon landline will also knock $5/mo off your FiOS Internet bill, but I'm not figuring that into this.) For real long-distance usage (and some outbound local calls) I have magicJack (which works very well for me), even though I don't make many long-distance calls. I have GrandCentral (still free for the immediate future) and I use the GC address book (because it's simpler) for most of my "outgoing" calls, which really makes them inbound calls to my line(s) (though magicJack could take over outbound calls should future GC fees prove to be "excessive"). So, that's $11 + $2 (mJ rounded up) = $13/mo. Half of 28 is 14, and 13 is less than 14... ta-daaa!
I haven't even mentioned that most of my incoming calls I take using GC to Gizmo via ATA (very good voice quality). I also have an Alltel prepaid plan (though Verizon will undoubtedly kill that once they've acquired Alltel, sending me to T-Mobile at $100/yr for 1,000 minutes) that currently costs me about $5/yr in usage; if nothing else, my cell phone makes for a good CallerID device (with GC routing calls to all of my numbers). CDV is fine for what it is; it's just over-priced--it's a cash cow for Comcast: it costs them virtually nothing to add it to their network and they rake in tons of money for it... it's quite a rip-off with respect to value (but some people really want that all-in-one, no-muss/no-fuss billing/setup). The only thing really wrong with CDV is that from Day One I got more calls from telemarketers & charity beggars (for which PhoneTray works very well to "filter" out) than from anyone else--I won't miss them.
Do I "need" the landline? No, but it does give me a price break on FiOS Internet, and "real" 911, and a working line when Internet access is down in addition to my cell phone--it's not line-powered copper but that's why I have so many UPSs; so I get an excellent voice-quality line for a few more dollars per month than I'd pay without it. Works for me.
I don't care much about TV; I like movies, which I can get from Netflix or elsewhere to see the ones I really want to see.
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anon @ 30th Jul 01:58PM:
Re: I just canceled my Comcast service...
The last time I looked (over a year ago) it was well over $50/mo. to get only CDV.
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anon @ 30th Jul 04:17PM:
Re: Comments?
"And we all know who won that race."
The lawyers? ;)
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fiberguy @ 30th Jul 02:26PM:
Re: So...
This whole website is becoming obsolete. Its almost time to change the news posting methods. Maybe it should be the story as posted now, and then Karl should simply post a talking point memo in return including the BBR greatest hits:
1) Here come caps
2) I'll get to my caps faster
3) The guide sucks
4) My tech killed my dog.. and quite possibly my sex life
5) They bought a TV for their building
6) Brian Roberts is Hitler
7) Comcast is the anti-christ
.. and the ever so popular...
8) I wish I had FiOS!
and many more...
For one, it would be a benefit..
Carpel tunnel would go on a decline, and, since people are posting the same responses to every post about cable, well, everyone would be doing their part, little by little, in reducing their broadband foot print making the world a better place to match the so-called global warming epidemic. Frontier users, of all, should take this serious as every message pushes them closer to that 5gb cap!! I mean, it's all been said before anyway...
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anon @ 30th Jul 02:37PM:
msg deleted
deleted by a moderator
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Cheese @ 30th Jul 02:57PM:
Re: So...
So if I drop back down to 6/1, this will help global warming? :o :o :p
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fiberguy @ 30th Jul 03:01PM:
Re: So...
:D Yes.. the polar ice caps will once again cover the top half of the earth! Move to dial up and we'll go back into an ice age! :)
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moonpuppy @ 30th Jul 03:01PM:
Re: Comments?
said by MOTO6809 :
DOCSIS3 is expensive, however it's much cheaper than building an entire system. It can also be deployed much quicker and on an as needed basis.
Your right FIOS is great because it goes to the house, but cable wouldn't have to do that since they are using coax. They could get away from running fiber to the house by deploying fiber to feeder. Basically after the node you only feed tap strings, at that point going out to 3ghz+ is much easier.
On the other hand if they still had concerns about coax, they could use the RF over glass(RFOG)solution. That could use existing fiber thats being used for HFC plant to deploy it and also keep the existing headend.
Cable has many option to compete with telco's without the need to spend as much as them.
You forgot the main reason for switching from copper to fiber optics. This is the first major upgrade Verizon has done to their infrastructure in decades. Some of the copper lines have been around since before many of us were born. It has a finite capacity and it is affected by changes in weather. Fiber is an upgrade and part of the rationale for it is high speed data (includes voice, video and data.)
All Verizon did was upgrade everything at one shot and the upgrades would have been needed in the future anyway.
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anon @ 30th Jul 03:04PM:
Re: So...
Yep, the prohibition on repetition would essentially shutdown the Internet: everyone would turn off their computers, and the electrical power crisis would be averted...
Stop the Internet, I want to get off!
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MrSpock29 @ 30th Jul 04:31PM:
Re: Comments?
said by Rick :
Yea..I have a couple.
FIVE HUNDRED AND FIFTY FIVE THOUSAND NEW PHONE CUSTOMERS IN 3 MONTHS TIME.
They are obliterating the telco industry.
It is unbelievable how such a monumental shift in someones core business is taking place.
And, judging by the # of new TV customers..the telco's are making basically zero impact on this companies tv business.
And heck..while they're at it..just throw ANOTHER 278,000 broadband customers into the mix as well.
This is ALL coming off the backs of the telco's. The landlines they're losing..DSL customers..they're losing.
All this in 3 months time? From a business perspective..it really is incredible.
Bundling IMHO is benefiting them on the phone side, and frankly, they don't have FiOS competition in most parts of our area at all. However, since their phone service has gone down at least 8 times this year that I know of (from family that still has them because of bundling), eventually that will wear thin. People want their phones to work.
Some of the outages have been for multi-hours as well.
As far as DSL, no one wants it, and in NJ if you can't get FiOS, you get 3 Mbps which isn't competitive with their speed, even though it is capped. Their numbers SHOULD be good, in fact, they should be much better.... they are shooting fish in a barrel......for now.
And since they act in an anti-competitive manner down here with their RSN by not sharing it with satellite cos, again, the numbers should be even better.
Notice on the tv side they are churning their own book.
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Rick @ 30th Jul 04:33PM:
Re: Comments?
said by meh37 :
"And we all know who won that race."
The lawyers? ;)
lol. true. :)
--
The Coyote captured the RR! Roadrunner Rick is now Comcastic!
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Hound @ 30th Jul 06:49PM:
Re: Comments?
Comcast 2Q earnings were below analysts
forecasts. Verizon's 2Q earnings exceeded
analysts forecasts.
Comcast added 555,000
VOIP subs. Verizon added 1,500,000 wireless subs. Verizon' s DSL and landline losses include subs lost in the Fairpoint sale.
Verizon added 176,000
FIOS TV subs in a footprint less than 20 percent of Comcasts. Comcast lost 138,000 video subs. When was the last Q that Comcast added video subs except by acquisition? Comcast has 5.6 million VOIP subs. Comcast announces about one in five subs have triple play. That means that virtually all VOIP subs are bundled. Average revenue per VOIP sub
dropped $3 per sub due to bundling. Will VOIP turn a profit after bundling expires? When is Comcast going to start adding video subs? Verizon Wireless is a symmetrical offset to
landline losses. What
is Comcast's offset to video losses? Comcast claims to have the most video experience. Why is Comcast last in HD?
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anon @ 30th Jul 09:24PM:
Re: Comments?
They lost basic subs which is to be expected, they are adding digital subs which are more profitable anyway.
At this point basic subs are becoming a liability since they make it harder for Comcast to phase out analog channels.
Basically analysts thought VZ would wipe the floor with Comcast with their Fios product. It turns out Comcast has stolen not only landline customers from them but DSL subs as well.
VOIP is very profitable even after bundling expires thanks to its low upkeep costs.
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anon @ 30th Jul 09:27PM:
Re: Comments? My answer to the phone companies
The "answer" to the phone companies- MagicJack! I have 3, they all work perfectly and I no longer have any regular telephone except dry loop dsl. You cannot beat $20 a year unlimited and I am sick of looking at my phone bills with all the bleeding heart tax add-ons. I have even given up Vonage-I can get a year with MJ for a month with Vonage and it tasks less bandwith and is better quality!
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anon @ 30th Jul 09:32PM:
Re: yeah, right
said by hopeflicker :
Do you really believe what these companies spew in their PR releases?
Trust us! :D
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rody_44 @ 30th Jul 10:47PM:
Re: Comments?
the main reason verizons cost for installing fios isnt really the reason they want you to believe. they started out running ALL the lines and as time goes by they are skipping by lines and only running them if and when a customer orders the service. they started that around 2 years ago and the practice continues. the only thing it accomplishes is is they dont have to run it when nobody orders the service. i know because i was running it.
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rody_44 @ 30th Jul 10:51PM:
Re: Comments?
i compare contract to contract and since im 6 months into my second contract with the same terms i have no reason to believe they wont give me a third. if they wont then i will change to what fits my needs then. if i go by what i was paying ide have to consider the fact that i was paying verizon 85 dollars a month for phone service. but why compare prices to that when i know what i can get today.
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MrSpock29 @ 31st Jul 02:41AM:
Re: yeah, right
said by openbox9 :
When it involves an earnings report and the SEC, yes!
the years are littered with examples of restatements, false statements, etc.
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openbox9 @ 31st Jul 05:45AM:
Re: yeah, right
Ok, but I'll still trust earning reports regulated by the SEC more than random press releases and various other ramblings by many corporations and govt entities.
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MrSpock29 @ 31st Jul 06:09AM:
Re: yeah, right
said by openbox9 :
Ok, but I'll still trust earning reports regulated by the SEC more than random press releases and various other ramblings by many corporations and govt entities.
I've been in the business a long time, be wary of both. The SEC does not vouch for accuracy of earnings reports or press releases for that matter.
Earnings reports are done by accountants, and there are more tricks in reports than most people realize.
Over the years, how certain revenue is allowed to be recognized has changed, etc. Some accountants will show things one way, others another way. You have to go through those things very carefully.
Also, any press release put out by a company is filed with the SEC also, as a Form 8k.
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openbox9 @ 31st Jul 06:17AM:
Re: yeah, right
I'm very aware of SEC filings and various accounting measures and I'm still willing to put my money where my mouth is. You are correct about public companies' press releases and the SEC.
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Comcast Beats Back Telcos In Q2 - Fourth largest phone company : 5.6 million customers....
