Old Content:

This Is Why You (Comcast) Suck

October 19, 2007 by Kyle Brady
Tags: Cable, Comcast, The Internet, TV
As required by the FTC, a Full Disclosure is available - this piece adheres to the Code of Ethics

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Why does Comcast continue to suck? No-one really knows...

Let's review the major problems: blocking certain types of Internet traffic, limiting their "unlimited" bandwidth, playing porn on the Disney channel, filtering emails, shutting down accounts with "too much" traffic, high prices, terrible service, terrible products... Did I miss anything? Probably, but that was just off the top of my head.

Oh, Comcast

Comcast has been around a long time. A long long time. And they pretty much have a monopoly on cable TV/Internet service, which is cool. On top of that, prices keep going up for all services, while the quality / features stay the same. Not a good way to do business if you like your customers.

Oh, speaking of customers, Comcast is known for their superb customer service, right? And they're always on time for appointments. [end sarcasm] If your business revolves around deliver exactly what the customer wants, along with when and how, why would you erode your business by failing to do so? People initially switched to Comcast Internet because it was faster than dial-up, and cheaper than DSL. Comcast is now randomly slow, not cheap at all, and known to randomly crap out.

Why You Will Fail

Comcast is about to lose it's stronghold on America, possibly even disappear forever. It's not going to happen overnight, but the beginnings of the revolution are already in place: unsatisfied customers, major complaints across the board, upcoming competitors, and an inability to adapt to the present [see the links above for references]. Outsourcing customer service to India? Check. Refusing to answer direct questions about company policies? Check. Political scandal [email filtering]? Check. Money issues [inexplicably rising prices and "fees"]? Check.

Does this remind you of any company? No? Think hard. The company's business involved black gold, and their name rhymed with "Genron".

Alternatives

Right now, the main problem with trying to leave Comcast is alternatives. For all intents and purposes, the majority of it's customer base have no choice. If you live in an apartment building (like myself), chances are it's prewired for cable, and they frown on dishes. The only alternative is DSL, which is only available depending on your location in relation to the source. This will change.

Verizon has FiOS coming down the pipes, and it's promising to be a whopper of a death threat. TV service that resembles "cable", fiber-optic speeds for Internet service, and phone? All for one low price? Sign me up, moi capitan! The only problem with FiOS is that it may not be in your area in the near future (for example, if you live on a farm 25 miles from civilization), but they're supposedly laying cable as fast as possible. I'll have it within 6 months. And believe you me, I'm going to leave Comcast in a blaze of hellfire.

The Cableocalypse

People hate Comcast. People like Verizon. People hate high prices. People love low prices. People hate bad customer service. People love good service. People hate being controlled/throttled. People love being free.

It's a simple equation. How else can I spell out Comcast's impending date with the four horsemen? Verizon sees the fragile pane of glass that is Comcast, and they're rushing to shatter it with the mighty hammer of Thor.

Old Content posts are leftovers from a less structured, less civilzed era that are kept for posterity.
Kyle can be found on Twitter and MySpace, or reached via email.