Verizon and AT&T Win J.D. Power TV Rankings
October 2009
J.D. Power and Associates released its TV customer satisfaction study focusing on four U.S. regions: North Central, East, West and South.
AT&T and Verizon beat out the Cable competition yet again in most of their respective regions. AT&T’s U-verse was number 1 in the West region (with a score of 721) and South (718) regions. In the East region, Verizon’s FiOS TV ranked number 1 with a score of 714. In the North Central region, WOW! (a small regional Cable Provider) lead the way with 724. In 2008, AT&T was number 1 in the North Central region; however, this year it now
gave way to WOW!.
“Total satisfaction” scored an average 632 on a 1,000-point scale, which is an increase of 23 points from 609 in 2008, which was the lowest industry average in the last five years. Five factors are measured to determine overall customer satisfaction: performance & reliability; customer service; cost of service; billing; and offerings & promotions.
In terms of “customer loyalty” the number of Cable customers that said they were “loyal to their provider” declined to 25% in 2009 from 27% in 2008. Satellite Providers dropped to 40% in 2009 in “customer loyalty,” from 44% in 2008.
Source: MRG, Inc., October 2009 IPTV Bulletin
Sigma Acquiring HPNA Chipmaker CopperGate
October 2009
Sigma Designs is acquiring HPNA chipmaker CopperGate for US$160 million. The company believes that the combination of Sigma and CopperGate “creates a large provider of networked home entertainment semiconductor solutions from set-top boxes to home networking equipment.” CopperGate has shipped more than 12 million chips that enable HomePNA phoneline networking.
Source: MRG, Inc., October 2009 IPTV Bulletin
Etisalat Acquired a 16.6% Stake in SoftAtHome
October 2009
U.A.E. Telco Etisalat said it acquired a 16.6% stake in SoftAtHome, the initiative started by French companies Thomson, Netgem and France Telecom Orange. Financial details of the transaction were not released. In addition to the ownership stake, Etisalat also chose SoftAtHome’s operating platform to deploy its new IPTV service in the U.A.E. Etisalat also recently launched its new 30Mbps FTTH package to 550,000 homes connected to its new FTTH network. The 30Mbps package is priced at AED699 (US$190.30) per month, which includes free installation, and one month’s rental waiver, as well as access to over 350 Etisalat hotspots.
Source: MRG, Inc., October 2009 IPTV Bulletin
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