An outdated document and a misinformed customer service rep led to some online squealing that Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) won't let subscribers buy their own cable modems to access its Extreme 105 service.
The brouhaha began when a Comcast customer vented on DSL Reports that "the rudest Comcast rep I had ever spoken to" said he "must rent a modem from them to receive the correct speeds on Extreme 105."
Compounding the situation, the rep then allegedly sent a document that DSL Reports described as rife with "painful grammatical errors" but that justified the rep's assertion that "for Extreme 105, the configuration must be done and maintained at certain specifications (and) only Comcast issued equipment ensures that the specifications are always met and are not altered intentionally or unintentionally."
Aside from the misinformation, the rep's alleged behavior also added fuel to a blaze already consuming Comcast's reputation for customer service.
When contacted about the situation, Comcast spokesman Charlie Douglas told DSL Reports that the rep and the document were wrong.
"The short of it is there is no policy change. Customers can buy or rent modems," Douglas said, providing a list of "approved devices" that can be purchased and installed.
Douglas said the document was apparently "from 2010 when we first launched 105 (and) there weren't modems for sale at retail. Four years later and there are plenty."
The policy does not extend to Comcast's Business Class service whose customers are required to use a Comcast-issued modem and router and pay for a static IP address and an equipment fee, an article in ars technica added.
For more:
- DSL Reports has this story
- ars technica has this story
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