Question

Hello, this question was not answered correctly. It did not give suggestions nor contain any paragraph. Please take these questions serious. thanks

• Alternatives (a few suggestions on how to fix the problem; Here is a great spot to tie in the functional areas) What are some suggestions on how to fix Comcast customer service department issues and suggestions on how Comcast can fix their unethical behavior, functional areas must be tied in. Must have a paragraph for each.

Answer 1

Comcast is frequently the subject of criticism. Customers of the telecommunications company report low levels of customer satisfaction on both service and cost. Comcast has also had several customer service scandals, the most notorious of which featured a representative not allowing a customer to cancel his service. This clip went viral. Comcast has also been widely criticized, most publicly by Netflix, for its position against net neutrality, the principle that all traffic on the internet should be treated equally.

In 2004 and 2007, the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) survey found that Comcast had the worst customer satisfaction rating of any company or government agency in the country, including the Internal Revenue Service. The ACSI indicates that almost half of all cable customers (regardless of company) have registered complaints, and that cable is the only industry to score below 60 in the ACSI. Comcast's Customer Service Rating by the ACSI surveys indicate that the company's customer service has never improved since the surveys began in 2001. Analysis of the surveys states that "Comcast is one of the lowest scoring companies in ACSI. As its customer satisfaction eroded by 7% over the past year, revenue increased by 12%." The ACSI analysis also addresses this contradiction, stating that "Such pricing power usually comes with some level of monopoly protection and most cable companies have little competition at the local level. This also means that a cable company can do well financially even though its customers are not particularly satisfied." In 2009 Comcast rebounded on its ACSI rating for television and Internet services, moving ahead of Charter Communications and into a tie with Time Warner Cable.

Within the Cable Television needs assessment report for the city of Fort Collins, Colorado, February 10, 2004 which was required for Comcast's franchise renewal the city's independent consultant found:
"Approximately 62% of the respondents, though, were very dissatisfied (along with another 25% who were dissatisfied) with the cost of cable television service."
"A majority of the respondents were satisfied with the friendliness and courtesy of customer service personnel. Overall, approximately 43% of the respondents rated the cable company's performance as fair, 30% regarded it as poor and another 30% rated the cable company's performance as good."

While Comcast does operate some of its own customer service call centers, it also outsources customer service and some technical support to Convergys Inc and until recently Transcom WorldWide, both third party call center companies.

On October 1, 2008, J.D. Power and Associates published its annual customer satisfaction survey for the nation's top 10 largest cable and satellite television providers. Comcast scored in the bottom 5 for each region of the United States, including 10th in the East Region. One of the largest internet based consumer-review services, Rateitall.com reports the average consumer review of Comcast as 1.6 out of 5 stars, based on a total of 511 reviews to date (2014).

Consumer affairs blog The Consumerist named Comcast "Worst Company in America" in 2010 and 2014. The company received the "Golden Poo" award to its Philadelphia headquarters in commemoration of the victory. The company also finished in the "top" three in 2008, 2009, 2011, and 2013. Since 2006, it has received more Golden, Silver and Bronze awards for poor customer service performance than any other company in the country, including Wal-Mart, Bank of America, and Ticketmaster.

Comcast has made efforts to improve customer satisfaction, including the Comcast Cares Digital Team. The Comcast Cares Digital Team began when then Customer Service Manager Frank Eliason decided Twitter would be an ideal way to communicate with customers. In 2010, @ComcastBonnie won the Customer Service category at the 2010 Shorty Awards.

The 2015 ACSI survey placed Comcast at or close to the bottom of primary company rankings in TV, Internet, and phone service.

The 2016 ACSI survey placed Comcast in the bottom half (11th out of 14) of Internet Service Providers and 8th out of 13 on subscription television service. The 2016 Consumer Reports' telecom service Ratings reported that Comcast was among the bottom dwellers in overall customer satisfaction.

Frequent complaints about Comcast's service include "stuffing" bills with unnecessary services, hidden service fees, outsized cancellation fees and improper credit checks.

Customer service after Hurricane Ike

Shortly after Hurricane Ike hit the Galveston, Texas area in 2008, customers received bills and later collection notices for unreturned equipment that was destroyed during the storm. One customer reported a $931 bill which included a $66 credit for interrupted phone service, but also included a $1000 charge for not returning her rented DVR, Cable Modem, and other equipment. Comcast responses differed after the storm, with some Customer Care agents telling customers to file with their insurance providers, and other agents advising customers to return their equipment, even if it was ruined or moldy.

2014 customer service scandals

In July 2014, technology journalist Ryan Block recorded a conversation with Comcast during which he attempted to disconnect his service. The recording immediately went viral, resulting in an official apology from Comcast.

In August, two similar stories went viral. One customer posted a YouTube video in which his call to cancel his service was put on hold until Comcast customer support offices closed. Another customer recorded a series of conversations in which Comcast promised him he would not be charged for certain services, charged him anyway, and then refused to reimburse him for the charges until he revealed that he had recorded the initial call. When the representative explained that she would only credit him because of the recording, the customer asked, "You're telling me that if I didn't have a recording of that call, you wouldn't have been able to do it?" "Yes, that is correct," she replied.

In the same month, Rapper Dann Furia blogged that he had contacted Comcast 25 times in six months without any resolution to a problem of $1,320 in wrongful charges.

Comcast customer Conal O'Rourke made headlines in October after his accounting firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), fired him as a result of his complaints against Comcast. O'Rourke contacted Comcast several times to dispute overcharging and improper fees, but problems continued for a year without resolution. He contacted Lawrence J. Salva, Comcast's Chief Accounting Officer and Controller, and after more failed attempts at resolution threatened to involve the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. Salva then contacted a partner at PwC and alleged that O'Rourke had behaved unethically. PwC terminated his employment as a result. Neither Comcast nor PwC will release recordings or documentation of O'Rourke's calls; they have also refused to disclose the content of the communications between Salva and the PwC partner that resulted in the decision to dismiss O'Rourke. PwC provides consulting services for Comcast, from which it garners upwards of $30 million a year in revenue. Salva was himself employed as a partner at PwC for 12 years before joining Comcast.

2015 customer name change scandal

In January 2015, Lisa Brown, a Comcast subscriber from Spokane, Washington called Comcast in attempt to downgrade her cable package, she was offered an upgrade which she denied. On her next billing cycle, she discovered the name on her bill was changed to "Asshole Brown". Comcast released a statement stating, "We have spoken with our customer and apologized for this completely unacceptable and inappropriate name change, We have zero tolerance for this type of disrespectful behavior and are conducting a thorough investigation to determine what happened. We are working with our customer to make this right and will take appropriate steps to prevent this from happening again." The employee in question was terminated. Brown's name was fixed, and a refund for 2 years of service was given, along with 2 more years of service for free.

Washington state lawsuit

In 2016, Bob Ferguson, the Attorney General of the state of Washington initiated a lawsuit against Comcast. He alleged that their equipment insurance plan, called the Service Protection Plan was “deceptively added the SPP to many of its Washington customers’ accounts without their knowledge or consent." The suit, which also claimed that the plan provided little actual coverage, asserted that Washington residents had paid for $73 million for the fraudulent services.