AT&T ranks low in Consumer Reports survey

A new survey from Consumer Reports ranks AT&T Mobility the lowest in customer satisfaction in 19 out of 26 cities, while the company's major competitor Verizon Wireless ranked highest in all of the 26 markets.

Respondents gave low marks to AT&T's service in New York and San Francisco--where subscribers, particularly iPhone users, have previously complained--as well as in Atlanta, Cleveland, Houston and other areas. The publication surveyed 50,000 readers in 26 U.S. cities.

"Apple's iPhones are the top smart phones in our ratings--actually, among the best of all phones we tested, period--but their exclusive carrier, AT&T, was middling at best in satisfaction," Consumer Reports said. "If you're readying to buy Apple's phone, prepare for possible disappointment with its service and expect to love the phone anyway."

In response, AT&T said it appreciated and valued customer feedback, according to a statement it provided to the Wall Street Journal's AllThingsD. "We learn from it, and it helps us serve our customers better. Without question the surest indication of customer satisfaction is churn, or turnover. For the last quarter, our postpaid churn was just 1.17 percent."

AT&T has previously acknowledged difficulties in meeting the data demands of iPhone users and has been upgrading and enhancing its network to increase capacity.

Pali Research analyst Walter Piecyk wrote in a research note that it is becoming a "familiar juxtaposition" for Verizon and AT&T to be on opposite ends of the satisfaction spectrum. "While we recognize the shortcomings of each of these surveys individually, we believe the consistency of AT&T's ranking and the numerous press reports cataloging its network problems present a looming problem for a company that we believe has become over-leveraged to the iPhone," he said, noting AT&T replaced Sprint Nextel at the bottom of this year's Consumer Reports survey.

 For more:
- see this Pali Research post (sub. req.)
- see this AllThingsD blog post

Related Articles:
AT&T, Verizon spar over 3G coverage ads
Verizon, AT&T squabble over 3G advertising claims
The search for the best 3G network
AT&T to double its 3G capacity