Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!csd4.csd.uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!texsun!texbell!vector!telecom-gateway From: john@zygot.ati.com (John Higdon) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: GTE Bashing?! ( was: BOCs and Regionals ) Message-ID: Date: 1 Sep 89 05:23:05 GMT Sender: news@vector.Dallas.TX.US Organization: Green Hills and Cows Lines: 64 Approved: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 341, message 6 of 8 In article , texbell!egsner!eric@cs. utexas.edu (Eric Schnoebelen) writes: > I live in one of the Dallas suburbs ( Lewisville ) served by > GTE.. I have never had any problem with them, and certainly not > recently.. > [...] > I had been called back by a tech at GTE saying that they > could find no problem at the CO, and if I would carefully check all of > my equipment.. I ( somewhat sheepishly ) told her that I had just > discovered the problem, and that it had been corrected.. Well, you did get their standard line, "We can't find anything wrong. It must be in your equipment." In your case it happened to be true. In most cases, not so. Seriously, I reflected for some time, and then conferred with a number of my associates. We concluded that to list all of the screwups performed by GTE (that other companies seem to avoid) would require more space than could ever be afforded by this forum. General categories include: 1. Arbitrary leased line disconnections 2. Outdated routing in local COs 3. Excessive time to repair simple outages (weeks) 4. Total local switch failure (one lasted two days in Los Gatos) 5. Feature offerings far behind other operating companies 6. Service reps not trained properly I have dealt with Pac*Bell and independents all over the state. From this experience it has been possible to formulate minimum standards of performance. GTE falls so short of these standards in every area that they have become known as the longest running telephone practical joke in history. GTE is America's answer to third-world telephony. I do have an open mind, but from the last twenty-five years of experience, it will take more than one customer satisfied with one repair call to convince me that GTE has become worthy of even the slightest amount of respect. > I guess I don't understand all the GTE bashing, just like I > don't understand all the Sprint bashing.. ( Sprint is my long distance > carrier.. No problems in recent memory.. ) Perhaps I can offer enlightenment. Many of the readers of this group have needs that are more sophisticated and complex than the average single-line residential customer. The real measure of a service provider is how well they can respond to diverse needs and situations. In my previous GTE story, I simply wanted a single telephone line for three days. This was so strange to them (apparently) that they stumbled and fell. Sure, I have friend in Los Gatos that has had service with GTE for many years. We talk on the phone and can hear each other just fine. And (except when his CO crashes!) the calls always go through. But this doesn't tell us much about how the company *really* performs. Glossary term for the day: _reorder_ ; GTE end-of-dialing signal -- John Higdon | P. O. Box 7648 | +1 408 723 1395 john@zygot.ati.com | San Jose, CA 95150 | M o o !