Blueprint for Jihad

Somebody just snagged it:

http://whois.org/whois_new.cgi?d=comcastmustdie&tld=com

We could apply "facebook pressure" as the students did to HSBC in the UK. Seemed to work well. Here's my post on it

http://thecword.typepad.com/thecword/2007/09/applying-pressu.html

Brandon Murphy
cword.org

Do it. Do it now.

But go bigger. There should be a mega-site that "outs" all companies of the stripe you describe.

It's time for customers to take back control. Time for our voices to be heard.

Isn't this the reason Al Gore invented the internet?

I have one word for you: DirectTV. I "fired" Comcast several years ago after customer service nightmares of my own and haven't looked back. Don't believe their deceptive ad claims about service interruptions due to weather. I had more service interruptions on clear, sunny days with Comcast and have never had ANY problems with DirectTV. Why would anyone believe what this company says? In the age of infinite choices why would anyone willingly choose this company?

I responded to the "Comcast Must Die" article yesterday (alas, with my own sob story) but I really like the idea of a national clearing house for exposing the idiocy of what Comcast tries to pass off as customer service. Along with price tiers that are meaningless and programming (300 channels really equals 100 channels of the same three channels) that misses the marketing needs of most Americans, the only thing that will work is total exposure and mass customer exits.

It's unfortunate that telecom companies only respond to what directly threatens their operating or net profit or ultimately, their stock price. But they've made that bed - let's ensure they have to lay on it in public. Thanks to all for your input. Keep it coming.

I sure wish we all had the same experiences with Direct TV. I had them before Comcast. While I did get decent programming, I was forced to switch to Comcast for their Internet service (I don't get DSL in my area). Anyway, a day after I cancelled my service, Direct TV sent my account to collections. All my bills had been paid well before the due date prior to that, and I hadn't even received the invoice for my final month yet. Guess they figured they'd get me back for cancelling. After two hours on the phone, trying to pay my bill (I did, finally), I contacted the BBB and filed a complaint. My request? An apology from Direct TV - that's it. They refused to comply, stating that it was standard business practice for them. Oddly, they continue to send me offers to come back, which I promptly discard.

Just when I thought Time Warner was as bad as you could get, along came Comcast who bought out our market and is now the only choice for cable/high spped internet. The problems described by all who have commented are absolutely true in our case as well... if I ran my business like they run their's I'd be flipping hamburgers for Mickey D's, not meaning that derogatory in any way.

It's pretty bad when their own service reps (if you are among the fortunate few who actually get one?, agrees that the company is in shambles operationally.

Start the blog... I'll add it to my daily Bi_ch list!

Better yet - some fledgling (or established) cable network has got to have some schedule time available for a show dedicated to exposing how inefficient and ineffective companies like Comcast are re: customer service. It could have the simple title of "The Customer is Always Right" or "This is American Quality?!" If Lou Dobbs claims to be the voice of the "little guy," then maybe one of his reporters could start this up @ CNN.

The occassional morning show or local news expose piece on such shady or unwelcome practices is not enough to bring these huge companies to heel.

Maybe they could follow around cable service techs with ah hidden camera to document "a day in the life" of one (or more) of these folks to make an example out of them - or to have an undercover reporter work as a customer service rep at a call center to show a behind the scenes look at those places - anything to drive towards a better customer service environment for consumers.

What do you think?

I suggest you open up the concept to an online Hall of Shame for Lousy Customer Service. It can apply to any company and category. It will become a resource that one checks before buying any service. Establish 4-6 criteria and let people score a company using those criteria. Thus, people can look up the company, scan the scores and then read the comments. You can this provide an annual or monthly ranking.

Michael Whitcomb, San Francisco

To be honest, customer service in general has been going through a downward spiral for several years now. The cable industry is perhaps the worst of the bunch mostly due to the lack of any 'real' competition. In my current area, I have no choice as to which company I can go with. Yes, I know Dish...but not all building will allow you to put a Dish. And FIOS is still rather expensive. So you are either forced to pay the extreme fees they charge due to non-competes and suck it up if you want cable. I'll be really happy when/if deregulation comes. Perhaps if they have to fight more for my dollar, I'll get treated better.

too bad most people are lazy slobs and won't take the time to visit a website to check reviews. that is why so many of these bad companies continue to stay afloat. simply because their customer base doesn't care enough. it's hard to do quality advertising when the actual delivery and use of the product ruin any goodwill or excitement built up from the advertising itself. Look at Apple slashing the price on the iphone. It left a lot of loyal customers angry. Apple could have done more to please them, instead it gave them $100 off their next purchase. Are they beating a path to the apple store to make their next purchase?

Perhaps we can take this in a different direction. Instead of trying to kill the brand, perhaps we can use the newfound collective consumer power to resurrect it. Comcast is an brand addicted to bad habits and desperately in need of an intervention; that's what we're looking to create over at the Cword. Tell us if you agree.
www.cword.org

As if all the other stuff wasn't bad enough, it pales in comparison to this aspect of Comcast, which was tragically and stupefyingly negligent:
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4155/is_20061215/ai_n16904222

Communistcast has their damn cable box in my yard!! I don't even have have cable! the damn useless cops said they a right to be there, I said I deal with it my way Sargent! he said fine everytime we approach comcast they sue us and we end up in the newspaper!!
So this black lady just walks into my yard, no permission or knock on my door, she is just walking back there on my private property.
I yell hey lady!! she says I have a right to see if you are stealing Cable from communistcast so I advise you get out of my face SIR!! then she called me a mental case and thief and then started on my poor neighbor!! then I clicked a photo of her up close with my cell camera ( to post to comcast haters websites worldwide! ) and again she accused me of stealing cable then accused my neighbor Ron too and Jim across the street who has never had cable as I nor Ron ever has!! !!

So I called the useless cops again, again they wanted no part of it even though I was threatened by a lady yelling inches from my face in my own damn yard and then she I ADVISE YOU GO INTO YOU'RE HOME!! NOW!! That's when I said now you can get the fuck off this land before I hurt you bitch!!, she did and fast too!!
, if she was a dude I would have TKO'd her ass! but the cops didn't care.

Well folks? the comcast cable box??? that was in my yard?? it is in a million fucking pieces now!!, so eat shit comcast!!

Avers.