PacBell Swimming in Sea of DSL Complaints

Customers of Pacific Bell's DSL service in California report billing problems, missed installation appointments and poorly trained technicians. The result has been a record number of complaints and a DSL crisis for many.

by Jim Thompson

Pacific Bell, California's largest phone company, is awash in broken promises, lost orders, and customer complaints as they struggle to fill DSL orders.

"I ordered DSL from PacBell months ago, and I'm still waiting for service," said Jay Goldman who lives in Orange County, California. "I've called and called the customer service department, but all they say is that the problem is being worked on and it should be solved soon. The service personnel are very nice, but I'm still frustrated and without service."

The problems for PacBell began back in May when they moved their DSL access operations to the then newly created company, SBC Advanced Solutions, Inc. The move was required when the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) approved the merger between SBC Communications and Americtech. In making its decisions, the FCC was hoping to prevent PacBell and SBC from favoring their own DSL business over CLECs who utilize Pacific Bell lines for their service.

The problems were immediate. Within a few days, PacBell, and its customers, were faced with a myriad of difficulties. This included shortages of both equipment and qualified personnel along with software problems. PacBell compounded the problems by launching an advertising blitz and offering deep discounts that had customers lining up for service.

Corporate greed
"If they were having problems getting the lines needed for the promised service, they should have told us," said Barry Waltrip of Los Angeles. The company apparently didn't learn from the mistakes of others like Bill Clinton (remember, "I didn't have sexual relations with that woman ... Monica Lewinsky."). Instead they complicated things by refusing to reduce their multimillion-dollar advertising blitz and admitting they couldn't keep up with the orders.

Many see this as a clear case of corporate greed coupled with a denial of their own capabilities and a complete disregard for the public. Not only has it raised the ire of the company's own customers, but it's resulted in problems and customer dissatisfaction for many CLECs as well.

Covad, Northpoint, and other CLECs who rely on PacBell for phone lines have been directly affected. If a CLEC orders a line from PacBell but doesn't get it when promised, it's the CLEC who suffers. The customer blames the CLEC even though it has no control over getting the lines needed to install DSL service for that customer.

Making an effort
Company executives do acknowledge that there are problems and say they are "making every effort" to correct them. Not only have they hired some 2,000 more employees, but they note that those being hired are trained in DSL technical issues.

One of the complaints in the early stages of their advertising push was that no one at PacBell seemed to have a clue about DSL. Order takers could do only that—take orders. They had no idea what they were selling and, consequently, could offer little or no explanation of the service.

They are also making efforts to insure that installation is possible and on schedule. In some cases they dispatch a technician to test phone lines prior to an installation to insure a successful connection. Customer "self-test" kits are also being made available in many areas.

Further, Pacific Bell has worked out many of the technical bugs and, in some cases, has offered customers compensation for their troubles. The compensation amounts to free service for a month or more.

Even so, at least 45,000 customers in California have been affected. Thousands more have suffered similar problems in SBC Advanced Service units in Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas, Connecticut, Missouri, and Kansas.

Growing number of complaints
According to the Los Angeles Times, at the end of July, nearly 700 complaints against PacBell by DSL customers had been filed with the California Public Utilities Commission. This compares to a total of only 162 complaints for all of 1999. The Times notes that complaints against all other DSL providers totaled only 78 by the end of July.

Although high, the numbers certainly don't reflect the true magnitude of the problems created by PacBell. It many ways, it's like rape statistics. For every woman who reports an attack, it's estimated that ten more victims remain silent.

I have talked to dozens of people who told me about problems getting PacBell to connect them to a DSL line. None of these people have taken the time and the trouble to actually file a complaint with the PUC.

When the problems began, Pacific Bell was, reportedly, taking orders at a rate of nearly 2,000 a day in California. Using these numbers, it's a sure bet that for every official complaint there are dozens, and perhaps hundreds, more who had problems.

PacBell not only has the majority of SBC's 435,000 DSL subscribers, it's also the leading high-speed provider in California. At the end of July, PacBell had nearly 300,000 DSL subscribers. This is a jump of more than eight times over the previous year.

New advertising campaign
But this doesn't seem to be enough for PacBell and SBC. In the midst of complaints from customers who are still waiting for service, they have launched yet another advertising blitz for DSL. The current campaign offers potential customers a Compaq computer at a discounted price with an order for DSL service at $59.95 per month, providing they sign a two-year contract. The basic cost for DSL service with PacBell is $39.95 per month.

Mike Woodard of Los Angeles, sees this as adding insult to injury. "First they lied to us about even getting DSL service, now they are trying to trick us into a long-term contact."

Nevertheless, the strong advertising campaign is working. PacBell's DSL subscriber list continues to growing right along with company revenues. For SBC this is proof that the service they offer is a good value and that their customers are happy.

Others argue that by luring customers to their service with high pressure ads and low prices, then locking them into long-term contacts, competitors are forced out of the process—at least until the contracts run out. CLECs further complain that it's one more example of an RBOC flexing its muscles.

The problems with PacBell illustrates both the growing demand for high-speed access along with the lack of choice for consumers. In the end, the real loser is, once again, the customer.

—End

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