Category: Big Tech

FIOS Porn, Thanks Verizon

FIOS Porn, Thanks Verizon — A few months ago we switched from Comcast to Verizon FIOS and finally got around to playing with the “video-on-demand” feature. There are categories for sports and health free movies and network TV shows, and an interesting one that says “adult” that, judging by the titles, consists of some of the raunchiest pornography available.

It appears one can make the feature disappear using parental controls but it is on by default.

There is no mention of the service in Verizon’s advertising.

The cost per movie is $12.95 so one suspects a nice profit is being made.

Maybe Verizon is just taking its cue from Mitt Romney and Marriott.

 

FIOS Porn, Thanks Verizon

FIOS Porn, Thanks Verizon

 

Phone Book Ends

Phone Book Ends == Verizon Pennsylvania’ s white pages —  the traditional phone book — will now only be delivered upon request.

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, Nov. 4, gave unanimous approval to a request by the company to change its tradition of including the listing with the distribution of its 12-million revenue producing yellow pages.

Verizon says they are doing it for the environment and that the move will save 200 tons of paper per year.

Verizon says the listings can be found on its website. It also says it is willing to provide them via a DVD.

The blue pages containing the numbers for government agencies and social services will remain.

Yellowbook, Verizon’s competitor, will continue to distribute white pages along with the paid advertising in its yellow pages.

Those still wanting a Verizon Pa. white pages should call its directory distribution center  at 800-888-8448.

The white page listing can  be found at http://www.verizon.com/whitepages.

 Phone Book Ends

Phone Book Ends

Comcast Cuts Customer Service Costs; Subscribers Drop

Munāphē mēṁ vr̥d’dhi which is how to say “we are in the money” in Hindi, at least according to Google’s translation service.

Philadelphia communications giant Comcast Corp. announced yesterday that profits rose 6 percent to $9.5 billion clearly helped by a  2.4 percent cut in customer service expenses and a 7 percent cut in technical labor.

In a certainly unrelated matter subscribers fell by 265,000.

This particular news site was one of them switching to Verizon. While there have been some glitches, Verizon customer service has been Americanly superb and there is no looking back.

 

Comcast Building Lobby Comcast Cuts Customer Service Costs; Subscribers Drop

Comcast Cuts Customer Service Costs; Subscribers Drop

Comcast Customers Surprised By Lost Channels

Comcast without any real warning has begun encrypting the channels that they had led owners of digital-ready TVs to believe would remain accessible to them sans the cheap digital adapter boxes with the even cheaper remotes.

It happened in the Windsor Circle area of Springfield, Pa on Wednesday. Other areas of the town were still getting channels without encryption as of Saturday but don’t expect it to last.

Comcast  had given away the digital adapters for free without an increase in cost but many owners of new TVs declined to hook them up because of the low quality remotes, unnecessary complexity and wire snarls, poorer picture quality and loss of functionality.

Others never bothered ordering them because they had been led by Comcast to believe they were unnecessary for owners of digital-ready TVs.

An explanation for the unexpected action that appeared Comcast.net on Wednesday appears to have been removed. It basically said the new policy was in regard to Comcast concerns about theft of services.

And of course, the tech support people were unable to tell you what had happened and not just due to the language barriers. Comcast apparently didn’t tell them what they did.

People are angry.

Verizon, btw, is offering an equivalent service to Comcast for $50 per month less.

 

Comcast Building Lobby Comcast Customers Surprised By Lost Channels

Comcast Customers Surprised By Lost Channels

Reported Agreement Lets Comcast Run NBC-Universal

It looks like Philly might become a major, if not the major, media center in the world. Comcast has reportedly reached an agreement with General Electric to give the Philadelphia-based corporation known for providing cable service a 51 percent share in NBC Universal whose properties include Universal Studios, NBC and its affiliates and Telemundo Television Studios.

GE now owns 80 percent of NBC Universal with the French-firm Vivendi owning the rest.

Reported Agreement Lets Comcast Run NBC-Universal