Even the U.S. Postal Service ranked higher in customer satisfaction, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) for the first quarter of 2009, released Tuesday by the University of Michigan.
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 not only the U.S. Postal Service, but also 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.
