Consumer Reports: Average Spending on Telecom Bundles is $1,848 a Year

Americans don’t believe they’re getting good value from their in-home telecom services, Internet and TV services in particular, despite the fact they spend an average $1,848 a year on them, according to a new market report from Consumer Reports National Research Center.

Even bundled service subscribers don’t see their service packages as any great value. Though they rated highly for service satisfaction, Verizon FiOS and regional cable telecom services provider WOW, both received “middling or lower” grades for value. When it comes to overall customer satisfaction among bundled service subscribers (Internet, TV and phone), Verizon FiOS took top honors. Verizon FiOS received the highest ratings for reliability across all three services, though it did receive more billing complaints than average, Consumer Reports noted. WOW scored highest overall among bundled telecom providers and received high marks for all services as well. SuddenLink and Bright House Networks also received higher-than-average satisfaction scores for bundled services. Consumers are getting better at negotiating deals with telecom service providers, Consumer Reports found. Ninety-two percent of survey respondents who reported trying to negotiate a better deal with their providers said they got one. Forty-six percent of those said they received a discounted price as much as $50 lower per month, 44 percent received a new or extended promotional rate, 33 percent received additional channels, and 16% got equipment free or at a discounted rate.