Today, the Internet dominates how we conduct business, communicate, and share information. I don’t believe that 10 years ago anyone could have foreseen its impact. We access it with desk tops, laptops and wireless hand held devices. Crucial to this access is the Internet provider (IP). Two of the main providers in Morgan Hill are Verizon and Charter. One provides access via your phone lines (DSL) the other through television co-axel cable. Both advertise options and programs which center on bandwidth. Bandwidth is often described as megabits per second (MB/sec). Verizon has plans up to 3.0 MB/sec., locally, and Charter has up to 10 MB/sec. Bandwidth is important to the user as the higher bandwidth gives you faster access to Web sites, downloads and uploads. Residents have the option of installing a modem and a router so that family members can access the Internet from their own personal computer or device. Some of these connections are hardwired or connected via a wireless home network. Wireless at the moment is slower.
I selected Charter as my Internet provider. I initially purchased the 3.0 MB/sec. plan. I had irritating problems and disconnects and slow access speeds. These problems persisted and they got worse. Family members complained, complaints grew and I was tasked with fixing the system. When I called for service it was in the evening, it was always a lengthy process. After spending between five and seven minutes with automated testing, I was placed in the queue for a technician who was often times stationed off-shore and at times difficult to understand. He or she would have me disconnect this, type this, ping that, etc. I was told that I had a virus, bad router, modem, and cable, computer blocking firewall, network card, or Windows OS issue. The IP never accepted responsibility, or acknowledged that they might be the source of the problem. Usually a call resulted in 30 minutes to two hours of frustration with little success. With no progress they would schedule a technician within five to seven days. This meant I had to take time off from work which was more than just an inconvenience. When the technician arrived, either morning or afternoon we would never find the problem. At times they would replace cable connections, test this and that and say, it is all working as intended. And I agree it was. While the tech was there all was working well which is quite frustrating. Over time I replaced just about everything, upgraded this or that, replaced wires, motherboards, routers and even bought my own modem which the IP usually provides.
When Charter offered an upgrade to 5.0 MB/sec., I jumped on the bandwagon. I signed up for a one-year agreement. I thought that the higher bandwidth was the solution. I was wrong. After many phone calls and service visits, I was at my wits end. Then Charter offered me 10.0 MB/sec. Oh my, this should do it, so I thought. But the results were the same.
Between the hours of 6 and 11 p.m. (prime time), when just about everyone is on the Internet, my bandwidth pummeled at times to 350 kilobits/sec., to no more than 1.5 MB/sec. There were significant fluctuations (latency issues), and spikes. It did not matter at which plan I was on. The results were always the same. What I found out was that during prime time when everyone was on, Charter could not deliver the speeds they advertised and I bought. Cable Internet as I now understand is shared, the more clients that were on the system, the slower the connection speeds and the poorer the performance. During the evenings, I never received the bandwidth I sought and bought. That is why the technicians who came out only during the day could never find the problem, as they would never come out at night by Charter’s policies when problems existed.
Anyone can go online and test their Internet speeds. You can go to http://www.speakeasy.net/speedtest/, and click on the local San Francisco tab and test your own system. I did this continuously, recorded the time and the results. It was clear that during prime time I could never achieve the bandwidth advertised.
My concerns have now centered on fraud. Is charter fraudulent in providing services it really could not provide? Charter has in its contract and in fine print which indicates that Internet speeds may vary. However when you can achieve only 20 to 40 percent of the purchased bandwidth, then I believe there is a legal issue that our local authorities must review.
The option at the moment is to contact our local District Attorney to investigate. If you are experiencing problems as I have, you can contact the Office of the District Attorney, Consumer Protection Unit, 70 West Hedding Street, West Wing San Jose, CA 95110 Phone: (408) 299-7400 Email:
we*******@da.us
. You can file a simple letter of complaint. The DA can investigate the problem in your behalf to correct the situation, and/or seek restitution.
Recourse is to switch to DSL. I recently switched to Verizon DSL. I am getting only 1.5 MB/sec. due to a limitation of distance from the switching station, but my 1.5 MB/sec. is far better than any 10 MB/sec. Charter was able to provide during prime time. My bandwidth is steady. Family members have stopped complaining. The difference is that DSL is not shared. It does not matter how many clients are on the system. As an added bonus, I am also paying half of what Charter charged.
I would like to hear from you on your experience with Charter Internet services. Are you or did you have performance issues? What were they and how were they resolved. Please let me know, and I will solicit the district attorney’s support in your behalf to perhaps help us recover fees paid for services which were not provided.
Mark Grzan is a 13-year Morgan Hill resident. He’s been serving on the Morgan Hill City Council for two years. He’s a computer applications teacher at Gavilan and Foothill colleges and an administrator at San Jose State University. Reach him at
gr*******@ve*****.net
.
