Volusia County’s consideration of a community-owned fiber optic network has been scoffed at by incumbent cable provider Bright House Networks, which claims the network is “redundant” and unnecessary.

The proposed fiber project is being promoted by Jim Cameron, vice president of government relations for the Daytona Regional Chamber of Commerce.  The organization believes a public-private fiber-optic network could do wonders for economic development across the Fun Coast.

But the idea of stringing miles of fiber to connect area businesses to a gigabit-speed network brought rolled eyes from the folks at the cable company.

“We have miles and miles of fiber-optic lines in Volusia County,” Donald Forbes, senior director of corporate communications for Bright House told the Daytona Beach News-Journal. “Where anyone is willing to do business with us, we can make it happen . . . You want it, we’ve got it.”

But area businesses supportive of Cameron’s initiative are mystified by Bright House’s secretive-fiber-network, because few ever heard of it before.

Jason Frederick, business development director for WorkSmart MD, a Daytona Beach medical billing company, was just one example.  The News-Journal reports Frederick was surprised when he was told that Bright House claims to have fiber lines in the county that can deliver Internet at one gigabit per second, about 200 times faster than average broadband service in the U.S., or faster.

“I haven’t heard anything about Bright House offering one gig, and my tech guy is laughing (incredulously) right now,” said Frederick.

In Search Of… Bright House’s Mystery Fiber

Bright House declined to quote pricing for access to their fiber network to the folks at the News-Journal, so Stop the Cap! called Bright House Networks’ Business Solutions department this morning posing as a new business customer looking for fiber optic access.

STC: We were calling to gather information about getting broadband service for our new Internet business.  Can you tell me what kind of broadband services you have available?

At this point, Bright House asked us a ton of questions about where the business was located, what we intended to do with the connection, how many employees we had, etc.  After feeding them answers, we got them to narrow down some basics, even as they tried to have a sales representative come out and meet with us (we explained they would have to fly to New York to manage that, and they should bring a shovel if they come.)

Bright House pointed us to their website for basic details, but stressed individual plans could be customized to meet our needs.  That was the invitation we were looking for.

None of these plans seemed at all fast enough for our needs, we explained.  The maximum plan on their website, 50/5Mbps, didn’t even come close.  Where was the 50/50 or 100/100Mbps plans?  What if we needed a gigabit?  Didn’t we read they ran a fiber network?

Bright House: We do run a fiber network, but it’s a special kind known as a hybrid fiber/coax network.  That is the most proven technology out there, installed to millions of homes and businesses across the country for more than a decade.

STC: Then all-fiber networks are unproven?

Bright House: In a way, yes.  But more important, they are enormously expensive.

STC: How expensive?

Bright House: We spent millions on ours.

STC: So you are saying if we wanted Bright House to deliver fiber to our business, it would cost millions?

Bright House: Probably not that much, but it would probably be a waste of money because it was so expensive.  We service business customers all over central Florida, and I’ll be honest none of them really need fiber — it would be a waste of money.  We couldn’t even give you a price for fiber because nobody ever asked us before.

STC: Wow, I am surprised nobody has even asked.  Our business would want symmetrical broadband so our upload and download speeds would be the same.  We also don’t want to pay an outrageous amount of money for it.  What would Bright House charge for a symmetrical connection?

Bright House: One of our account specialists would have to talk with you about that.  Our network was designed to deliver faster download speeds because that is what our customers want.

STC: Well, not every customer.

Bright House: I understand that, and it sounds like you are a special case.  I think you’ll find we deliver the best service in town for business customers, and we sure do a lot better than AT&T.  Have you spoken with them about their service?

STC: We don’t want DSL.

Bright House (laughing): I can certainly agree with you there.  AT&T is a good company for what they do, but I am proud to say we do better.  And we can give you cable television and business phone service in one package.

STC: Yes, but we’re probably getting ahead of ourselves.  How much would it cost for just the broadband service?

Bright House: Before we quote you a price, we’d really like to sit down with you or a representative of your company so we can explain our whole product line and the benefits we offer.  Is there someone down here we could meet with?

STC: Not yet, but I appreciate the information and we can always call you back.

(We did learn from another source 50/5Mbps business class service costs around $190 a month from Bright House.)

So Bright House fiber remains elusive, even after our call.  Connected Nation, which has direct ties to Big Telecom, couldn’t find any fiber across the area either.  That was surprising, considering the large telecom companies help manage their operations:

The Florida Department of Management Services is running Connected Nation’s efforts in the Sunshine State.

If the goal is widespread fiber-optic coverage, then Connected Nation’s map shows Florida sorely needs a fiber dietary supplement (Metamucil-optic?). Only a small portion of the state — around Orlando and to the south, and around Tampa and along the surrounding Gulf Coast — has fiber coverage, according to Connected Nation’s survey results.

Jessica Ditto, Connected Nation communications director, said the map only reflects spots where fiber-optic lines run to homes, and that Bright House might not have responded accurately to the survey. Bright House’s Forbes said he hadn’t heard of Connected Nation.

Another indictment for the useless work Connected Nation does for large sums.  If a major provider doesn’t answer the questionnaire, broadband from that provider apparently does not exist as far as Connected Nation is concerned.

Finding fiber is Daytona is turning into that commercial for Honey Nut Clusters cereal.  It’s got to be around somewhere.

The county director of economic development, Phil Ehlinger, suggests it is all around us even if we can’t see it at first glance.

“I am not aware of anyone (in the business community) who is unable to get the service that they want,” Ehlinger told the newspaper. “Bright House and some of the other folks, AT&T, they have been putting in fiber optic all over the county.”

But the important question left unanswered is whether or not you can access it.  For individuals, the answer is clearly no.  Bright House believes its network is plenty fast enough, and AT&T didn’t want to talk to us in time for today’s story.  But phone companies, already vulnerable in the broadband speed race, prefers to deflect the question, arguing you don’t need that speed anyway.

Fiber optics delivers the fastest broadband experience, period.  But when providers don’t sell or promote the service, it’s easy to suggest nobody wants it.

But not too far away, in communities like Chattanooga, and several areas in North Carolina, they -do- want it.  Even Verizon FiOS, a growing presence in the northeastern United States, has won over business and residential customers to fiber-fast broadband.  In many cases, the network sells itself.

But in central Florida, Bright House won’t sell the service to you even if you ask.  It’s apparently the best kept secret in Daytona Beach.

[Updated 2/4/2011 — Don Forbes attached a reply to a piece on Broadband Reports that quotes from our piece:

Bright House Networks does in fact provide Fiber to the Premise (FTTP) – or what is known in the business services market as “dedicated access” – to its business customers who want this type of bandwidth. We work directly with our business customers to provide solutions tailored to meet their specific needs. We currently serve more than 3,000 Florida business locations directly with fiber. We currently offer speeds up to 1 Gbps, although it should be understood most business customers do not require 1Gbps speeds. Residential customers, at this time, do not need the bandwidth offered with dedicated fiber – however, Bright House has led the industry in comprehensively deploying next-generation bandwidth services (DOCSIS 3.0) to its’ entire footprint in Florida – current speeds offered are 50 Mbps with the ability to offer much higher. We provision our network according to our customers’ needs.

As a private company, we do reserve the right to share specific proprietary details of our network and our business for competitive reasons. However, it is no secret that we offer the above services.

It apparently is a secret to the people taking calls at Bright House’s business services hotline at 1-877-424-9246.  That’s the number we called yesterday to inquire.  The results are noted above.  I’d make two observations:

1. The point of our piece was partly to confirm whether fiber is a big secret in the Daytona area, as was the implication.  In our experience, it was.
2. Once again, another provider — this time Bright House — has made the declaration that residential customers don’t need fiber to the home access, something Verizon and many municipal/community-owned networks would strongly disagree with.  We do as well.  As long as phone companies compete using DSL, cable companies can safely make this claim and it won’t harm their business.  But if a far faster fiber to the home network arrives in town delivering far faster speeds (at equal or lower prices), Bright House, and other companies like it, could be in trouble — especially if their new competitors market themselves well.

We stand by our piece, which documents our direct experiences with Bright House Networks business class customer service.]

[flv width=”640″ height=”500″]http://www.phillipdampier.com/video/Kabletown.flv[/flv]

Liz Lemon and Jack Donaghy greet Kabletown — an oblique reference to Comcast — in this clip from NBC’s ’30 Rock.’  (Adult Language) (1 minute)

On Monday, the Federal Minister of Industry Tony Clement issued a statement about Internet Overcharging that was so non-committal, media companies are interpreting his comments as “for” and “against” usage-based billing.

Tony Clement’s full statement:

“On Tuesday, January 25, 2011, the CRTC announced its decision to allow wholesale and retail internet service providers to charge customers for exceeding the monthly usage of data transfer permitted with their broadband Internet package. This will mean, for the first time, that many smaller and regional internet service providers will be required to move to a system of usage-based billing for their customers.

I am aware that an appeal has been initiated by a market participant. As Canada’s Industry Minister, it is my job to help encourage an innovative and competitive marketplace, and to ensure Canadian consumers have real choices in the services they purchase. I can assure that, as with any ruling, this decision will be studied carefully to ensure that competition, innovation and consumers were all fairly considered.

The Harper Government is committed to encouraging choice and competition in wireless and internet markets. Increased choice results in more competition, which means lower prices and better quality services for Canadians. We have always been clear on our policies in this regard and will continue on this path.

Our Conservative Government is focused on the economy and creating a positive environment for job creators and business to flourish. Canadians can count on us to do what is in the best interest of consumers.”

CBC Radio made mention of Clement’s comments and indicated the minister had expressed concerns about the billing scheme, but readers of wire service reports from AgenceQMI are getting an entirely different view — Clement’s approval of the new pricing scheme.

In a French language story headlined, “Minister Clement justifies the end of unlimited Internet packages,” the news agency got just a little creative in interpreting Clement’s statement (roughly translated from the French original):

He also argues that billing based on actual usage would more efficiently manage Internet traffic and bandwidth and provide a better experience for light users, currently impacted by massive data exchanges among the Internet’s heaviest users.

Minister Clement, who supports this decision, said in a statement that it is his duty to encourage a more competitive market.

It’s hardly a coincidence that AgenceQMI‘s creative spin of Clement’s statement just happens to match the position of Videotron, Quebec’s largest cable company.  They are both owned by Quebecor Media.  Videotron engages in Internet Overcharging that left one Montreal student with an $1,800 broadband bill.

Less than a day after writing up our experiences with the Customer Retention Department of Time Warner Cable, there have been new developments.

Because our account was configured for a disconnect, a Time Warner retention specialist called us, this time from Albany, N.Y.  His role — to win us back as a Time Warner customer.  His office formerly called customers who turned in their equipment and canceled service, but now that the company is losing more cable-TV customers than it adds, they are now trying to stop disconnects at all costs.

Incredibly, this high-level office was authorized to provide deals even Time Warner’s regional office could not touch.

The best deal we could negotiate with the Buffalo office included the company’s triple play package, Road Runner Turbo, one DVR box and one digital set top box for $132 a month.

That was until we received a call this morning with an offer that blew that out of the water — $79.95 a month for the company’s triple-play package including a year of free DVR service. Putting the two packages together to compare pricing, Albany’s Time Warner office was willing offer that same package for $106.90, plus tax.

That’s a difference of $25 a month.

That’s quite a difference.

But then, on cue, Time Warner proved our earlier point about confusing and conflicting information being thrown at customers.

Minutes after agreeing to that offer, which would have cut some additional red tape from the earlier deal, we were called back and told the deal fell apart, at least temporarily.

It seems customers who agree to an earlier offer end up locking themselves out from something even better.  Because we worked with another retention specialist who partially entered an order into the system, and despite the fact the company called us with something better, they reneged on the better offer.

“I can’t even begin the order,” we were told.  “As long as a pending order is in place, there is nothing we can do.”

We found it odd the company would call us with an offer we couldn’t get.  We were then told that office is authorized to make offers to customers who:

• downgrade to one service;
• have a pending disconnect order;
• actually disconnect service.

We asked if we pulled out of our earlier retention deal, would we then be qualified to proceed with his?  He repeated the three conditions and said he’d love to offer us something but until one of those conditions were in place, he could not.

Hint. Hint.

It’s remarkable Time Warner would offer customers one deal they insist was the best available price, only to have another employee cut $25 off the top without breaking a sweat.  It’s quickly reminding me of my last car buying experience — always a major headache.  So many tricks, traps, and games.

We’ll be bringing this whole matter up with the company shortly.

In the meantime, we’re going to modify our advice to customers searching for a better deal.  Call and schedule a disconnect or downgrade of your service two weeks out, tell the agent you are not prepared to discuss a retention deal, and then wait for them to call you a few days later.  Ours originated from the Time Warner Sales Center at 1-877-726-0712, for those who check caller ID.

Ask about the triple play $79 offer that includes a year of free DVR service.

Oh, and about the free “DVR service.”  We learned Time Warner no longer considers the “service” the same as the “box.”  This word salad means customers pay about $8 and change for the DVR hardware, but get the “service” that let’s you record shows on the equipment for free — a $3 value.

We told you it was confusing.

[Updated: 1:02pm ET — We just spoke with Time Warner Cable, who apologized for the confusion over pricing and the follow-up retention call we received.  Time Warner Cable will honor any offers made by any of their agents, so with the assistance of a supervisor, we were able to take advantage of this offer after all.  They even threw in free Turbo service for a year, free Showtime, and gave us a “whole house DVR” at a special rate, bringing the total out of the door price to around $116 a month, including all equipment.  When Road Runner Extreme (30/5Mbps) service arrives, that will run an additional $10 per month.  The entire ordeal netted us almost $60 a month in savings, more if we didn’t upgrade to the “whole house DVR.”]

Tim pays Time Warner Cable around $45 a month for 10/1Mbps service.  Jake pays Comcast $35 a month for 12/2Mbps service.  Neither reader of Stop the Cap! actually receives those speeds once the sun goes down, however.

Jake, who lives in a neighborhood near Philadelphia populated by loads of college students watches his download speed plummet to 4Mbps in the evening, even lower on weekends.  Tim, a reader in the North Ponds Park region of Webster, N.Y., does even worse — 1.2Mbps evenings and weekends.

Neither reader is alone.  The disparity in marketed speeds vs. actual speeds reveals the truth about cable modem technology — if not properly managed, congestion can bring the broadband party to a sudden halt (or at least rebuffering.)

Both are examples of “overselling,” the practice of piling too many customers onto too small a broadband pipe.  If nobody is using the connection in the neighborhood, speeds are great.  But as students get out of class and mom and dad get home from work, everyone wants to be online.  Soon enough, the pipeline gets filled and speeds drop as the network tries to accommodate everyone.

Most cable companies use fiber optics to bring a limited amount of bandwidth into individual areas of their network.  Some might cover the better part of a town, others only a few city blocks.  Every customer in the area shares that bandwidth.  Cable companies monitor these connections looking for signs they are becoming overcongested during peak usage times.  When those alarms start sounding consistently, companies are supposed to upgrade the area (or divide it up) to keep broadband service working close to advertised speeds.

But some companies are waiting until broadband service becomes practically unusable before spending the money to upgrade their networks.

“I knew they were overselling this area when I noticed downloads speeds fell off the cliff, but the upload speed was near normal,” Jake writes. “The time of day also tells the story.  Starting after 4pm, speeds begin to drop and become downright terrible after dinner and on weekends.  Sunday night is always the worst.”

It’s a similar story in west Webster, near Lake Ontario, where neighborhoods several miles apart all watch their Road Runner speeds slow to a crawl.

“Browsing is slow, downloads are painfully slow, latency is very high and streaming any sort of video online is impossible,” Robert, another Webster resident, told Time Warner Cable (and us).  “I have been a customer since 1998 and for me to not even be able to download at a 1 Megabit speed when this service is supposed to be 10 megs (and more with PowerBoost) is inexcusable.”

The problem of overselling is also common in larger cities like New York and Philadelphia, where some neighborhoods endure “broadband” speeds that resemble “dial-up” when customers pile on the network.

“Comcast says they never see a problem and have repeated that to me over and over, even when they send a truck out,” Jake tells Stop the Cap! “Of course, their truck rolls in the daytime when there isn’t a problem.”

Time Warner customers in eastern Monroe County have been told the cable company is well aware of the congestion problems, and technicians dispatched to area homes candidly admit the company has not kept up with the growth of new housing developments.  Several customers have asked for, and won, several months of service credits for broadband they simply cannot use.

Tim says the entire affair has left him with doubts about Time Warner’s reputation to provide quality broadband service.

“At one time, I considered myself a candidate to upgrade to Time Warner wideband when it became available,” he tells us. “My thinking on that has changed and I am looking into viable alternatives to Time Warner. Money has become of less importance to me than principle, and I may end up with a higher cost solution than staying with Time Warner.”

With our encouragement, these customers (among others) have filed complaints with the Better Business Bureau and have tried to get attention focused on their neighborhoods.

A representative of Time Warner today told Robert the company has confirmed Webster has a problem and it is being worked on, but no specific date has been offered when things will return to normal.  He received a credit for one month of service.

Jake wants answers about how a company the size of Comcast can ignore a problem of this magnitude.

“Is it really about the money,” he asks.  “This company just bought NBC and doesn’t have the resources to sell Internet service that at least comes close to the speeds they advertise?”

Stop the Cap! advises customers with speed problems to make your feelings known.  The squeaky wheel gets the upgrade.  Start with customer service and work your way up.  Demand service credits, an in-person repair visit to check your lines, and then escalate complaints to supervisors and social media networks like Twitter and Facebook.  Also consider contacting local media “consumer reporters,” and file complaints with the Better Business Bureau.  Sooner or later, a manager will escalate your case to a department that is empowered to authorize upgrades without red tape.

Considering the enormous amount of revenue earned from selling broadband service, it is only fair to expect you will have access to something close to the speeds offered when you signed up.