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Verizon FiOS repeats as 'most competitive' telecom provider in rankings

The Capital Times  —  7/23/2008 12:51 pm

Verizon FiOS repeated as the "most competitive" telecom provider in 2008, research firm wRatings Corp. reported this week.

Verizon FiOS, which delivers phone, Internet and video services via fiber optic lines, scored 73.0 of a possible 100 points, easily outdistancing No. 2 Frontier Phone at 52.9.

Other notable companies in the top 20 include DISH Network, which rose from fourth last year to third with a score of 42.3; Charter Communications, which fell from second last year to 10th with 31.9; DirecTV, which rose from 23rd to 17th with 20.8; and AT&T Telephone, which fell from third to 20th with 14.9.

"In turbulent times, consumers become highly selective and seek out only the companies best meeting their expectations," wRatings Founder and CEO Gary A. Williams said in a statement. "And expectations today are much different than ever before. The answer in the early 2000's downturn was for companies to return to the basics and shred non-core business segments. What's different in 2008 is that the most competitive companies are breaking outside of traditional industry boundaries to weave all their segments into a cohesive business."

For example, phone companes have been moving into video services while cable companies have been moving into phone services.

Herndon, Va.-based wRatings said its rankings identify the best performing companies or business segments through a patented method that blends financial and consumer data. wRatings interviews more than 50,000 consumers each quarter to rate how well companies meet their expectations.

Specifically, wRatings measures a company's ability to achieve higher economic profit than rivals and sustain that advantage through competitive moats -- or barriers to entry -- as rated by consumers. Each W Score blends a company's historical economic profit with its forward-looking ability to meet consumer expectations. The wRatings approach identifies nine moats that create a durable advantage and measures them in a consistent way across every industry.

The Capital Times  —  7/23/2008 12:51 pm