More, More, More About Comcast
Friday, June 27, 2008 at 4:55 PM | Filed under Comcast, complaint, mass media
I got a cookie-cutter response this morning from Comcast about the horrible ads I wrote about at 3 a.m. this morning. (You see, in addition to talking live with someone, I also sent an e-mail complaint.)
The response said that Comcast is using the ads "to educate our customers about the value of Comcast Digital Cable service." I just checked what ads are on the screen now. Three of the banners tell me how to use features of the cable box (such as how to set reminders for shows) that I already know how to use. The fourth banner is an ad for pay-per-view wrestling. Wow, Comcast knows me well! Because I love wrestling, and I know absolutely nothing about how to use the cable box we've had for years!
I was surprised that I got another e-mail from a different Comcast employee this afternoon who apparently stumbled across my blog. (Either that, or Comcast is constantly scanning the Internet for criticism about them.) I guess it's a little naïve of me to think that nobody might read this blog, except that nobody ever leaves comments anymore. He thanked me for sharing my feedback and said that Comcast is "working on a new interactive guide" with the hope "to illuminate the issues that you are currently experiencing." To illuminate the issue? As in to lighten up the ads, as in to make them more visibly prominent? This must be a hint at more ads to come. Great.
Maybe he meant to say that they hope to eliminate the ads. But I doubt it. These ads are going to stick around. They're going to make the television look as tacky as MySpace.
But you know what? I still like Comcast. Know why? Because it's Comcastic.
The response said that Comcast is using the ads "to educate our customers about the value of Comcast Digital Cable service." I just checked what ads are on the screen now. Three of the banners tell me how to use features of the cable box (such as how to set reminders for shows) that I already know how to use. The fourth banner is an ad for pay-per-view wrestling. Wow, Comcast knows me well! Because I love wrestling, and I know absolutely nothing about how to use the cable box we've had for years!
I was surprised that I got another e-mail from a different Comcast employee this afternoon who apparently stumbled across my blog. (Either that, or Comcast is constantly scanning the Internet for criticism about them.) I guess it's a little naïve of me to think that nobody might read this blog, except that nobody ever leaves comments anymore. He thanked me for sharing my feedback and said that Comcast is "working on a new interactive guide" with the hope "to illuminate the issues that you are currently experiencing." To illuminate the issue? As in to lighten up the ads, as in to make them more visibly prominent? This must be a hint at more ads to come. Great.
Maybe he meant to say that they hope to eliminate the ads. But I doubt it. These ads are going to stick around. They're going to make the television look as tacky as MySpace.
But you know what? I still like Comcast. Know why? Because it's Comcastic.
Just read this article on NYTimes.com.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/25/technology/25comcast.html
The article seemed to indicate that you (and others) take exception to Comcast peeking at your blog when you mention their company in a negative context. From your post I couldn't really tell whether you feel this way or not. However, in my opinion people need to face facts and realize that if they want to publicly air their feelings, they have to be willing to deal with the consequences This kind of thing hardly qualifies as a "Big Brother is watching you" scenario. When you put your opinions out in the blogosphere, there can be no complaining that people read, and respond to what you write.
I was more surprised than upset that I got a response from Comcast. I certainly don't resent that Comcast noticed my blog, but the tone of the reply I got made it seem as though it were a response to a customer service submission. The greater point of my blog article was just to vent and whine, not to request help. I think that I hate ads more than the average person: I still refuse to use the program guides.
I suppose what I'm most bitter about is that he sent the reply directly and privately to my email address, rather than posting it as a comment that everyone could read. I'm sure that some bloggers might not like it if he did that, but I don't think I would have deleted it. Since he replied in an email, it feels like he didn't want others in on the conversation. I might feel different about his response if I thought there were a greater chance of the ads disappearing, but from what I've read online, they've been around in other parts of the country for almost two years now, so I don't think they'll be disappearing any time soon.
Perhaps the only reason I mentioned "Big Brother" was because I was just finishing 1984 for the first time when the whole thing was going on. I definitely wasn't expecting a reply from Comcast—it feels like nobody even reads this blog. As you can see from other posts on this blog, there are a lot of articles with no comments.
I've been a Comcast customer since 2000 and have added their services over the years to the point where I now have TV, HSI, and digital phone with them. I've had very few problem and actually like their service...but I might switch the TV to satellite because of something over which they have no control. I record alot of TV shows and movies on their Tivo box, and sometimes burn them to DVD. Over the past year, at least 20 recordings have been ruined by those emergency broadcast tests. I think Comcast has no control over them, but it would be nice if they ran the tests at a specified time so I could avoid recording then. As it is, the tests are randomly run at all hours (around midnight, middle of the night, sometimes between 1-3PM), and I've seen them daily, weekly, or monthly. They really should try to remove the random nature of it and bring a bit of order to the frequency of those EMS tests.
There is actually, a new trend of "customer service" responses via blogs and social network sites, especially Twitter. Its especially good for mega-corporations that need a boost in thier personal service. I've done research on this for my job so thanks for making me laugh about the topic :)
As for complaints about clutter and advertising- you bring up larger issues, the fact is that advertising pays for almost all broadcast media and as far as any type of TV is concerned, they are freaked about losing ad revenue to online video ("TV") and commercial skipping software.
I have been having a problem with a different provider, and I noticed an article in the NYT about Comcast responding to the blog about using up advertising space. Way to go. Would you recommend a blog site to get action on a long standing billing problem with a cable provider who will not come out to our residence?