COSTA MESA, Calif.—AT&T/DirecTV and Dish Networks have come out on top when it comes to consumer satisfaction for TV providers, according to the J.D. Power 2020 U.S. Residential Television Service Provider Satisfaction Study. 

Surveying more than 20,000 consumers, the TV Service Provider study evaluated cable/satellite TV providers from October 2019 to July 2020.

AT&T/DirecTV and Dish Network tied nationally with a score of 763. AT&T/DirecTV ranked highest in the East region (793), while Dish was highest in North Central (749) and South (781); the two providers tied in the West (752). J.D. Power says this is the third year in a row that Dish Network ranked the highest nationally.

Xfinity and Spectrum were the two providers directly behind AT&T/DirecTV and Dish, earning national scores of 733 and 716, respectively.

J.D. Power also did a survey for Residential Internet Service Providers. There was no national study, but Verizon came out on top in the East (769), while AT&T/DirecTV ranked highest in North Central (742), South (769) and West (742).

“With the country quarantining at home, internet and television services were under enormous pressure to continue performing reliably,” said Ian Greenblatt, managing director at J.D. Power. “True to form, providers did not succumb to the additional demand. Instead, they kept Americas connected: working, informed and entertained, thereby retaining their customers’ satisfaction.”

For more information on the satisfaction surveys, visit J.D. Power’s website. 

WASHINGTON – The FCC has approved the merger of AT&T and DirecTV into a single entity, AT&T-DirecTV. However, the commission has also issued a set of conditions on which the merger will be required to follow.

The first condition is that AT&T-DirecTV is required to expand its deployment of high-speed, fiber-optic broadband Internet access service to 12.5 million customer locations, as well as E-rate eligible schools and libraries. AT&T-DirecTV is also prohibited from using discriminatory practices to disadvantage online video distribution services and must submit its Internet interconnection agreements for review by the FCC. Lastly, broadband services will be offered to low-income consumers at discounted rates.

These conditions will remain in effect for AT&T-DirecTV for four years after the merger closes.

AT&T announced its intentions to acquire DirecTV in May 2014 for the price of $48.5 billion.

FCC chairman Tom Wheeler, commissioners Mignon Clyburn and Jessica Rosenworcel voted in favor of the deal; commissioner Michael O’Rielly concurred in part, and commissioner Ajit Pai dissented in part.