A study released Thursday and conducted by Temkin Group revealed the best and worst companies of the TV services sector, with Bright House and Dish Network (Nasdaq: DISH) grabbing top honors and Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) and Charter Communications ranking the lowest in the industry.
"Bad customer experience is an ongoing epidemic in the TV services sector," said Bruce Temkin, managing partner of Temkin Group, in a statement announcing the release of the 2013 Temkin Experience Ratings. "Even the best firm in the industry is rated in the bottom third of all companies."
The report used three criteria to evaluate customer satisfaction: functionality (the ability of customers to do what they want), accessibility (the ease of working with a company) and emotional response (how consumers feel about their interactions with the company). It surveyed 10,000 customers about 246 companies across various sectors, with 10 companies in the TV services sector: AT&T (NYSE: T), Bright House Networks, Cablevision (NYSE: CVC), Charter Communications, Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA), Cox Communications, DirecTV (Nasdaq: DTV), Dish Network, Time Warner Cable and Verizon (NYSE: VZ).
Although Bright House and Dish were top among the TV services sector, they ranked far down the list of companies across all sectors, tying for 166th place. They earned ratings of "okay." On the other end of the spectrum, Time Warner Cable came in 244th, tying for next to last place.
In terms of chart position, Charter Communications improved eight points this year, while Cox's rating decreased six points. The average rating for the TV services sector remained steady compared to 2012.
This is far from the first time customer service in the cable industry has been criticized harshly, and cable companies have been struggling for years to improve this aspect of their businesses. Judging by the results of the Temkin study, they still have a long way to go.
For more:
- see the Temkin Group release
Related articles:
Consumerist pits Cablevision vs. Time Warner Cable in 'worst company in America' tournament
Consumer Reports: WOW, Verizon are best triple-play providers
Verizon, WOW, DirecTV, Dish top J.D. Power residential pay TV customer satisfaction survey