Residential Internet Service providers

— The number of performance quality, reliability and connection speed problems has declined from last year as TV and Internet service providers (ISP) continue to upgrade their networks to newer technology and faster connection speeds, according to the three U.S. wireline studies released today: the J.D. Power 2014 U.S. Residential Television Service Provider Satisfaction StudySM; the J.D. Power 2014 U.S. Residential Internet Service Provider Satisfaction StudySM; and the J.D. Power 2014 U.S. Residential Telephone Service Provider Satisfaction Study.SM

The annual wireline studies evaluate residential customers’ experiences with TV, Internet and phone services in four regions: East, South, North Central and West. The studies measure customer satisfaction based on five factors: performance and reliability; cost of service; programming (TV only); billing; communication; and customer service. Satisfaction is calculated on a 1, 000-point scale.

“The ability to provide a high-quality experience with all wireline services is paramount as performance and reliability is the most critical driver of overall satisfaction, ” said Kirk Parsons, senior director of telecommunications at J.D. Power. “While customers may be leveraging the same network or connection across multiple services, their experience can be different given the equipment type, connection to the home, service plans used and the different activities performed on each.”

According to Parsons, as expectations regarding usage, performance quality and reliability continue to evolve, companies that understand these dynamics will be better positioned to provide a more satisfying customer experience, which can lead to higher levels of overall satisfaction and higher rates of retention, advocacy, and return on investment.

KEY FINDINGS

Residential Television Service Provider Satisfaction Study

• DIRECTV and Verizon FiOS (738) rank highest (in a tie) in TV customer satisfaction in the East region; AT&T U-verse (750) ranks highest in the North Central region; Verizon FiOS (751) ranks highest in the South region; and DISH Network (739) ranks highest in the West region.
• Satisfaction with performance and reliability has improved to 743 in 2014, an increase of 17 points from 726 in 2013.
• Customers experience fewer television service quality problems in 2014. For example, 31 percent
  of customers have experienced picture freezing in the past 3 months, down from 38 percent in 2013. Moreover, just 46 percent of customers have experienced a temporary loss of signal, a decrease from 51 percent year over year.
• Slightly fewer customers have experienced a television outage in 2014, compared with 2013 (28% vs. 30%, respectively). That 2 percent improvement positively impacts overall satisfaction by 89 points among customers who do not experience an outage, compared with those who do experience one.