NJ BPU, Weighing Altice Investigation, Hears Complaints
A parade of New Jersey local government officials and residents testified Tuesday before the state Board of Public Utilities about problems with Altice broadband and customer service, as BPU considers opening an investigation. Commissioner Mary-Anna Holden said the hearing was initiated by numerous complaints around the state. “These services are essential for the residents,” and the board is concerned, said President Joseph Fiordaliso.
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Mayors, municipal council members and subscribers testified for more than three hours about problems such as persistent broadband outages, frequent needs to reboot modems and routers, and the customer service line not being staffed with trained personnel or having sufficient line capacity. Fiordaliso, said this hearing and comments received through March 23 will help BPU decide what to do next.
The cable ISP "is committed to ensuring all our New Jersey customers receive reliable service," and the pandemic and Tropical Storm Isaias "presented unique and unprecedented challenges" to network performance and customer care, said Altice Senior Director-Government Affairs Marilyn Davis. She said the health crisis caused "a sudden and dramatic increase" in network demand, with average household broadband usage jumping 40%. It caused temporary unavailability of customer service, field service and other personnel, she said.
Altice accelerated its investment in New Jersey and "feel[s] confident" about meeting state quality commitments "on a sustained basis," Davis said. She said that since the 2016 Cablevision acquisition, Altice made big investments in the state, such as upgrading its broadband network to provide 1 Gbps. She said New Jersey is one of Altice's first markets for building a fiber-to-the-home network capable of speeds of 10 Gbps. Due to the long wait times for customer service calls, Altice implemented work from home and changed its call center facility configuration to limit closures if an employee contracts COVID-19, she said. Altice met state customer service standards for call answering and call abandonment in Q4, she added.
Residents and local officials said the problems well predated the novel coronavirus. Complaints against Comcast and Verizon, which faced similar pandemic issues, "are minimal to nonexistent," said Gregory McGuckin, a state assemblyman acting as legal counsel for Jackson Township. He said service has deteriorated for years and urged BPU to have Altice do an internal investigation on whether it's meeting state-required service obligations. Piscataway Councilwoman Gabrielle Cahill said the state should consider additional penalties for Altice for chronic noncompliance with the conditions put on its 2016 Cablevision acquisition.
The issues faced by towns and citizens "require active intervention by the board," said state Division of Rate Counsel lawyer Maria Novas-Ruiz. She said it's unquestionable that Altice didn't provide adequate and reliable service.