AT&T

I kinda of got asked recently why I seriously dislike AT&T as a company. I've made more than a few cracks about their inability to upgrade their network infrastructure and their paying millions for an exclusive phone license. I also spoke out against their attempted purchase of T-Mobile, and pretty much the entire tech community laughed it's collective rear-end off at AT&T's petulant press release on T-Mobile's layoffs.

Then there is the whole problem with AT&T's throttling of subscribers bandwidth. There is an extreme disconnect between what subscribers think they are paying for, and what AT&T thinks the customer is paying for. Couple this bandwidth throttling debacle with AT&T's continuous history of lousy customer service, and I think the basis for my personal dislike for AT&T is outlined. As a company AT&T has been the poster child for executive incompetence and corporate mismanagement.

The problem with AT&T is further complicated that, on the whole, the entire company is basically shamed by a few people the shareholders should kick to the curb. I have friends who have been with AT&T for years in the Southeast USA and have never had a problem with dropped calls or bad phone service. I have friends who have gone into the AT&T store and were given online promotional deals by in-store managers. At least local to where I live AT&T will happily talk discounts for multiyear contracts and multiple phone purchase, something other service providers such a Sprint, Boost, Virgin, and T-Mobile would not discuss.

Then there is the ultimate matter of pricing. AT&T's pricing far undercuts Verizon, and in the Obama Economy, every penny matters. I might not like AT&T's management, but if it was my money on the line for service? If it was other people's money on the line? I am not entirely sure I would not go with AT&T as a cell provider right now.