Originally posted on LinkedIn Pulse on June 8th, 2015
The cable industry faces many challenges, but most of them provide exciting opportunities to remake the industry for the Digital Age and better serve the changing desires of consumers. That transformation is now underway.
We continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible over our networks, providing the fastest broadband speeds available, delivering consumers an “anytime, anywhere” entertainment experience and introducing new services that make our lives better. Some of the best visual stories ever produced are emerging from cable programming partnerships and are proliferating across every screen we own. And we remain a strong economic engine — proudly employing more than 380,000 Americans; 38 percent of who are people of color and 34 percent of who are women. Our broadband platform is a critical ingredient in the recipe producing the most world-changing innovation in history.
Undoubtedly, the cable industry has a central role in the continuing Internet revolution. Yet, it is saddled with a perception of being a graying industry — its better days behind it and unable to offer consumers imaginative experiences and exceptional customer care. Like all perceptions, this one is speckled with misconceptions and kernels of truth, but it is wrong in implying the industry is hopelessly stuck in the mud of yesteryear. It is our responsibility to tell a better story than the “cable guy” euphemism that is predictable fodder for late-night comedians. We cannot do so with just words; we need to better position our industry through impactful and sustained actions. And we will.
Today, this industry is driving toward widely available gigabit Internet speeds by 2017. We are deploying hundreds of thousands of Wi-Fi hotspots that allow consumers to access the Internet when untethered from their homes. The industry knows consumers want content on every screen in their life and it is delivering new products, like TV Everywhere, that make it possible to do so and thereby increase the value of the subscription and liberate consumers from a fixed television set.
“It is our responsibility to tell a better story than the ‘cable guy.’”
And there is more. From voice-controlled remotes to easier search options, companies are refreshing and transforming interfaces and navigation. On-demand libraries are growing deeper and easier to access.
Finally, we are listening, learning and responding to complaints about poor customer service. A consumer turns over hard-earned dollars that pay the salary of our employees, fund our investments and produce our profits. They are owed exceptional customer service. Comcast recently announced a huge effort to improve; committing $300 million to customer service, and hiring 5,500 new customer service professionals. Other companies, from the very big to the very small, are also making customer service satisfaction their highest priority.
“Cable guys” brought some great things to America in the past, but its vitality today rests on moving beyond past achievement and bringing great things to consumers in the future. The industry has been working to chart a new course, and I am confident it can discover new worlds that deliver great bounty to those it serves.
This is the first in a multi-part series on the future of the cable customer experience. Look out for the next blog on Tuesday, June 23rd.