AT&T Changes the Way it Packages and Sells Broadband

BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–AT&T this week announced plans to change the way it packages and sells broadband services to consumers. Rather than marketing speeds “up to” a certain point, the Telco will instead propose to customers tiered offerings, with clearly stated minimum and maximum transmission rates. A new report by Strategy Analytics, “AT&T’s Tiered Service: Taking a Bite Out of Fraudband,” applauds this move.

While the new tiers don’t necessarily represent an actual performance improvement, the transparency it provides to the customer will serve to enhance the overall Quality of Experience (QoE), the report says. It is a step in the right direction, and one that customers will welcome.

“The ‘up to’ marketing strategy has drawn the ire of broadband customers for years,” notes Ben Piper, Director of the Strategy Analytics Multiplay Market Dynamics service. “It is widely perceived as a classic ‘bait-and-switch’ technique, analogous to a supermarket advertising a six pack with ‘up to six cans.’”

There are clearly service issues beyond the Service Provider’s control, including customer equipment and distance from the central office. However, the policy shift ensures that customers get a better understanding of the types of speeds they can reasonably expect. This alone could help AT&T differentiate itself in the market.

David Mercer, Vice-President of the Strategy Analytics Digital Consumer Practice, welcomes AT&T’s move. “We have long urged Service Providers to move toward a tiered pricing model, and are pleased to see AT&T take this step.”

Digital Signals Mean Less Noise

Analog and digital signals are both subject to impairments or “noise”.  In an analog signal this noise is heard as static on the other end of the call.  But on a digital signal this noise is eliminated when the signal is repaired en route.

Both analog and digital signals reduce their strength when traveling long distances (regardless of the transmission media).  They decrease in volume, fade and are more susceptible to interference such as static and other electromagnetic energy.  However, digital signals can be “repaired” better than analog signals.

When a digital signal loses strength and fades over distance, there is equipment on the line to regenerate the signal.  This equipment knows that each bit is either a one or a zero and it recreates it.  Any noise (or static) is discarded during the repair process.

In an analog signal, the process of strengthening the signal is to amplify all of the waves in the transmission.  This includes the noise or static that was picked up along the way.

People who first used digital wireless telephones rather than their analog wireless counterparts commented on the improvement in voice clarity.