There are still potholes on the information superhighway when it comes to customer satisfaction, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) for the first quarter of 2009, released Tuesday by the University of Michigan.
The ACSI is a national economic indicator of customer evaluations based on a 100-point scale.
The index for fixed line telephone service fell slightly, dropping 1 percent to 72, while customer satisfaction with wireless telephone service increased slightly, up 1.5 percent to 69, a new all-time high for the category.
To offer some context, telephony scored lower than the U.S. Postal Service and energy utilities, which each got 74. However, they were higher than airlines, which at 64 remained one of the lowest scoring businesses in ACSI. Full-service restaurants got the top rank with 84.
In the fixed line telephone category, smaller local and long-distance providers such as Vonage went up 1 percent to 75, and now lead the industry, followed by Cox Communications, which was unchanged at 74. In contrast, Comcast Corp. lost ground, declining 3 percent to 67. AT&T Inc., Qwest Communications International Inc. and Verizon Communications all came in at a score of 71. While both AT&T and Qwest fell, 4 percent and 2 percent, respectively, Verizon was up 1 percent from 70.
AT&T lost the ground it gained a year ago when it surged 7 percent to 75, capturing the industry lead. University of Michigan Professor Claes Fornell noted problems with bundling of services, customer service deficiencies, and a slower-than-expected rollout of its U-verse television service among the culprits. “While bundling may prove a significant challenge for AT&T and others in the industry, it also offers potential leverage and, if done well, may lead to higher satisfaction for all customers,” he wrote in his analysis of the ACSI. “As the demarcation continues to blur among fixed-line telephone, cable and Internet providers ..., the increase in competition and consumer choice options should lead to higher levels of customer satisfaction.”