Telco, Satellite Tops in JD Power Survey

DirecTV came out on top in the J.D. Power U.S. Residential Television Customer Satisfaction surveys in the East and North Central regions of the country, as satellite and telco service providers dominated the ranks and cable operators finished at the bottom of the list.

DirecTV scored 771 out of a possible 1,000 in the East, followed by Dish Network (757) and Verizon FiOS TV (756). The average score in the region was 721. In the cable sector, Cablevision ranked the highest with a score of 707. They were followed by Cox Communications (705) Comcast (689) and Time Warner Cable (686).

In the North Central Region, DirecTV tied with its new corporate parent AT&T’s U-verse service with a score of 750. They were followed by Dish (735) and overbuilder WideOpenWest (721). The average score in the North Central region was 710 and cable operators ranked well below that mark, with Comcast (689) leading the sector. They were followed by Charter (688) and Time Warner Cable (666).

Rounding out the TV survey, Dish Networks was tops in the West with a score of 761 and Verzon FiOS led the South with a score of 777.

Verizon was tops among residential Internet Service Providers in the East (738), South (749) and West (731) regions, while AT&T ranked highest in the North Central region.

For residential phone service, AT&T ranked highest in the North Central and West regions (758 each); Verizon ranks highest in the East (769) and South (773) regions.

“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 and technology, media & telecom practice leader at J.D. Power in a statement. “The fact that households continue to choose to upgrade their wireline connection to digital service is a testament to its improved performance and benefits, such as higher quality video and faster Internet speeds.”