Volume Control

"For the past couple of years, there's been a nice equilibrium in the broadband market, where cable had speed and [digital subscriber line] had price as main differentiators. Comes FiOS and Verizon has price and speed, and cable's forced to respond in kind. Head to head competition is tough (no one likes a price war), and it makes it all the more imperative to find things beyond price, speed, and the bundle as potential differentiators [or] loyalty builders. But for consumers, it's totally great."

Joseph Lazlo, Jupiter Research http://weblogs.jupiterresearch.com/analysts/laszlo/archives/011749.html

… but Not for Much Longer

“Let me point out that currently my cable bill is $130 with $39.95 for 3 Mbps high-speed Internet. If Verizon or any other provider can offer me a monthly package that includes $25 unlimited VoIP, $30 broadband data, $50 TV programming, and $30 for wireless phone service for a grand total of $135/month I’d switch in a heartbeat. Verizon, like several other carriers, has a distinct advantage [from] the cable companies in that they can also bundle wireless cell-phone service.”

Tom Keating, VoIP and Gadgets Blog http://blog.tmcnet.com/blog/tom-keating/voip/2006-voip-predictions.asp

Nothing to Sign Here

“The best part of this is there is no contract. We would have to switch phone numbers, so that means we would probably run a dual-phone system for the first few months, then discontinue Verizon entirely.”

Andrew Li, LiveJournal.com, on the benefits of replacing Verizon phone service with Cablevision’s Optimum Voice. http://andyli.livejournal.com/612775.html

When More Is Too Much

“So what can the telcos do to rebuild their businesses instead of creating a new cable competitor? They could start by exploiting using their unique assets to solve real consumer issues and do so in a way that differentiates them from cable and satellite companies. … My prediction is that these TV initiatives by the telcos are going to be about as successful as the 500 channel video-on-demand cable experiments in Florida about a decade ago. And it’s all because consumers are already overwhelmed with the tyranny of too much content and not enough time. Adding more content and services doing the same thing isn’t going to help.”

Carl Howe, The Blackfriars Blog http://www.blackfriarsinc.com/blog/2005/11/att-and-verizon-plan-must-lose-money.html