[Satellite News 05-18-10] While the cable and satellite industry enjoyed a 5 percent customer satisfaction rating increase in the American Customer Satisfaction Index’s (ASCI) 2010 first quarter report as a whole, Dish Network stood out as a clear winner as it topped rival satellite pay-TV provider DirecTV by three points to become the highest rated U.S. provider in customer satisfaction.
    The report, released May 17, showed Dish Network coming in just below the fiber-optic providers with an 11 percent customer service increase from 2009 at a rating of 71. This is the first time since 2005 that Dish Network surpassed DirectTV, which saw a ratings drop of 4 percent to 68.
    The ACSI study surveyed consumers in the first quarter of 2010 for their ratings about perceived overall quality, perceived value and expectations. The ACSI survey is produced in partnership with the American Society for Quality and the international consulting firm CFI Group.
    ACSI Managing Director David VanAmburg, who heads index study, said that the satellite industry performed exceptionally well in 2009 and was actually helped by the introduction of the fiber-optic TV services such as Verizon’s FiOS and AT&T’s U-verse. “Telecoms are encroaching on cable’s territory, forcing the competition to raise the bar. The competitive pressure seems to have the desired effect of increasing satisfaction across the whole industry,” said VanAmburg.
    Customers migrating from cable to fiber-optic services pushed cable scores downward and allowed Dish Network to score 4 points higher than Cox, 10 points higher than Comcast and Time Warner, and 11 points higher than Charter.
    Dish Network also scored better than rival satellite and cable companies in customer loyalty and perceived value, receiving the fewest complaints in the entire industry for the second year in a row, and advanced in areas of customer expectations and perceived quality, with scores above the industry average, according to the study.
    “Dish Network’s dramatically improved ranking in the ACSI survey is testimony to the considerable strides we made over the past year to re-establish our leadership in customer service,” said Dish Network Chairman, President and CEO Charlie Ergen in a statement.
    VanAmburg said that telecoms would continue to impact traditional cable providers until a change of customer service strategy is implemented. “Although the telecoms have had success as they’ve made their way into cable’s territory, it does not appear as though cable has enjoyed the same success as they’ve merged into the fixed-line service.”