• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
Comcast

The Cable TV Industry Is Getting Even Less Popular

By
Aaron Pressman
Aaron Pressman
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Aaron Pressman
Aaron Pressman
Down Arrow Button Icon
May 25, 2017, 10:58 AM ET

It seems nobody loves their cable TV or home Internet provider. Wireless carriers, however, are on the upswing.

That’s the news from the huge annual survey of 43 industries from the American Customer Satisfaction Index. In 2017, cable operators and ISP tied for last place, with an average customer satisfaction rating of just 64%. The wireless industry was still near the bottom of the rankings, in 38th place, just below the U.S. postal system. But its 73% score was up almost three percentage points from last year.

Many of the same companies, like Comcast and Verizon, dominate both fields, ACSI noted. And neither industry offers much choice to consumers, with most localities having only one or two cable and Internet providers. The cable industry’s rating slipped 1.5 percentage points from last year, while the rating for ISPs was unchanged.

“Customer service remains abysmal, and viewers are continuing to switch over to streaming services with much higher customer satisfaction,” Claes Fornell, ACSI Chairman, said in a statement accompanying the results. “More than half a million subscribers defected from cable and satellite providers during the first quarter—the largest loss in history.”

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Nearly at the bottom of the bottom-ranked industry was Comcast, whose Xfinity cable TV brand earned a satisfaction rating of 58%, down six percentage points from last year and worse than every other brand except Mediacom, which scored just 56%. The decline came despite Comcast (CMCSA) CEO Brian Roberts’ efforts to fix customer service problems with a $300 million improvement plan started in 2015. Verizon’s FiOS TV service was top-ranked in the industry at 71%.

Internet service providers have hurt their reputations by raising prices and offering slow or unreliable service in some parts of the country, ACSI said. Verizon’s FiOS service was top-ranked in the sector, but its 71% rating was down from 73% last year. Frontier (FTR) brought up the rear with a rating of 57%, down from 59% in 2016.

In the wireless industry, prepaid service TracFone Wireless had the highest rating of any carrier at 79%. The largest carriers were closely clustered, with Verizon (VZ) at a 74% rating, Sprint (S) and T-Mobile (TMUS) tied at 73%, and AT&T (T) rated 72%.

The top-ranked industries in this year’s survey were makers of television and video players at 87%, and soft drink makers at 84%. Breweries, food manufacturers, Internet retailers, and makers of personal care and cleaning products all tied at 83%. The index surveyed 36,194 randomly chosen consumers over the past year.

About the Author
By Aaron Pressman
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in

Tim Cook reveals the advice he gave Apple’s next CEO: The most important decision he’ll make is ‘where he spends his time’
Big TechApple
Tim Cook reveals the advice he gave Apple’s next CEO: The most important decision he’ll make is ‘where he spends his time’
By Alexei OreskovicApril 30, 2026
4 hours ago
Meta’s threat to quit New Mexico ‘is showing the world how little it cares about child safety,’ AG says
LawMeta
Meta’s threat to quit New Mexico ‘is showing the world how little it cares about child safety,’ AG says
By Catherina GioinoApril 30, 2026
6 hours ago
Moreno gestures with his hand
PoliticsU.S. Senate
A ‘no-brainer’: Senate unanimously bans members and staff from using prediction markets
By Mary Clare Jalonick and The Associated PressApril 30, 2026
7 hours ago
Kevin Warsh, nominee for chairman of the Federal Reserve.
BankingFederal Reserve
Former Fed economist raises alarm on Warsh after historically partisan vote: ‘this is not normal is going to be a theme’
By Eva RoytburgApril 30, 2026
7 hours ago
Landry speaks a podium wearing a white cowboy hat.
PoliticsSupreme Court
Two days before early voting starts, Louisiana suspends its congressional primaries after SCOTUS knocks majority-minority districts
By Sara Cline, Jack Brook, David A. Lieb and The Associated PressApril 30, 2026
7 hours ago
A banner depicting portraits of Iran's late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei
PoliticsIran
Iranian supreme leader says the only place Americans belong in the Gulf is ‘at the bottom of its waters’
By Jon Gambrell, Aamer Madhani and The Associated PressApril 30, 2026
7 hours ago

Most Popular

Apple cofounder Ronald Wayne—whose stake would be worth up to $400 billion had he not sold it in 1976—says that at 91, he has no regrets
Success
Apple cofounder Ronald Wayne—whose stake would be worth up to $400 billion had he not sold it in 1976—says that at 91, he has no regrets
By Preston ForeApril 27, 2026
4 days ago
Google Cloud revenue is now 18% of Alphabet's business. Is this the beginning of the end of Google's search identity?
Big Tech
Google Cloud revenue is now 18% of Alphabet's business. Is this the beginning of the end of Google's search identity?
By Alexei OreskovicApril 29, 2026
1 day ago
‘The cost of compute is far beyond the costs of the employees’: Nvidia executive says right now AI is more expensive than paying human workers
AI
‘The cost of compute is far beyond the costs of the employees’: Nvidia executive says right now AI is more expensive than paying human workers
By Sasha RogelbergApril 28, 2026
3 days ago
China dominates the world's lithium supply. The U.S. just found 328 years' worth in its own backyard
North America
China dominates the world's lithium supply. The U.S. just found 328 years' worth in its own backyard
By Jake AngeloApril 30, 2026
10 hours ago
With no end in sight, Trump considers new options in Iran war—including the ‘Dark Eagle’ hypersonic missile
Big Tech
With no end in sight, Trump considers new options in Iran war—including the ‘Dark Eagle’ hypersonic missile
By Jim EdwardsApril 30, 2026
18 hours ago
No, tariffs are not strengthening the economy
Commentary
No, tariffs are not strengthening the economy
By Alex DuranteApril 29, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.