Netflix attacks Comcast’s $40bn TWC deal

[Radio Spider]

Film and TV streaming service claims the deal would give Comcast too much control over the provision of high-speed internet services in the US

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/0e268384-...ished_links/rss/companies_media/feed//product

 

[umfan]

A reasonable argument. It does surprise me though as I thought Comcast had bought them off with that recent preferred access deal they signed with Netflix.

 

[Avid Listener]

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/0e268384-...ished_links/rss/companies_media/feed//product

Do you have a link that doesn't require registering and/or paying a fee to read?

 

[Bill_W]

Don't large parts of Comcast's footprint have Internet competition by the phone companies, either Verizon's FiOS or AT&T's U-verse? And then where those aren't available, there's DSL.
Maybe the FCC can require Comcast to open up its cable line to Internet competition the way it forced the phone companies to open up their copper lines to DSL competition.
The company I work for gets its Internet and phone from a 3rd party company. It used to come in through a Verizon T3 line. Verizon was just in to install FiOS. They now get the same service from the other company coming in through the Verizon FiOS ONT. Talking to the VZ tech, the FiOS line is much faster. If Verizon has to let other companies use it's lines, why not Comcast?

 

[K6JHU]

My Comcast footprint is:
Comcast - 25 Mbps
DSL - 1.7 Mbps
Cell Phone - 36 Kbps

Tell me where I have a real choice here.

 

[newsmark]

My Comcast footprint is:
Comcast - 25 Mbps
DSL - 1.7 Mbps
Cell Phone - 36 Kbps

Tell me where I have a real choice here.

I totally get what you're saying, and let me say I have reservations about the merger myself. But in this particular case, your (lack of) choices don't really change if the merger goes through.

 

[newsmark]

Maybe the FCC can require Comcast to open up its cable line to Internet competition the way it forced the phone companies to open up their copper lines to DSL competition.

Sounds good in theory. But in practice, if your Internet goes out or slows to a crawl, you don't know which company is at fault--and they're going to blame each other while you have to keep paying the bill.

 

[Silkie]

Mr. Rogers might ask, "Can you spell oligarchy, boys and girls?".

 

[Bill_W]

I had Comcast with a good triple play price. When I moved, I moved to a house that was prewired with FiOS so, where I am, I have the choice of Xfinity or FiOS. Comcast gave me an even better price to stay with them. They wouldn't give me the same price after 3 years, I switched to Verizon. Verizon knew my house was wired and I wasn't a customer and they sent mail for 3 years trying to get me to switch. I've been with them for 3 years now and Comcast for 3 years has been trying to get me back. It is a shame that Verizon hasn't deployed FiOS in their entire footprint. Too costly? Maybe the rest could be a hybrid IPTV system like AT&T's U-verse. Is U-verse bigger than FiOS? It seems to me, anywhere FiOS was deployed where Comcast is, the FiOS customer is a former Comcast customer.
It seems that Verizon, AT&T and the other cell carriers wants to beef up its 4G network for faster internet and maybe home based internet. Even down the Jersey Shore, I belive Verizon asked NJ if they could offer wireless phone service via VZW instead of rewiring entire towns after Sandy. If say Verizon buys DirecTv and AT&T buys Dish, maybe a viable option to Comcast's Xfinity is a wireless/satellite triple play from a hybrid cell/satellite company and with this option, you would have 2 of them to compete.