Ray expresses disappointment over the staff report recommending the denial of the sale of Verizon to Fairpoint. He believes they should have given approval with conditions.
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About Me
- Ray Richardson
- I live in Westbrook with my wonderful wife Dee Dee and our four children. We have been residents of Maine for a little over 22 years, moving here from Florida in 1985.
2 comments:
On one hand, you make some very good points, but overall I am not sure this deal is the best thing for Maine.
While I agree that Verizon has made it pretty clear they do not wish to be here, I disagree that Fairpoint is the better choice simply because they do want to be here. To upgrade the system the way it needs to be is a very tall order. The money involved in upgrading is staggering and with the purchase, Fairpoint is taking on a huge debt load. That is a major concern as a consumer that is already paying a significant amount for phone and internet service. How much more are we going to have to pay? I think most people are willing to pay a little more for a decent upgrade (I would be), but it still has to be reasonable.
I happen to live in a city with high speed internet access and am very pleased with what I have. I do have a conern that I may lose some services yet have to pay more money to cover the company's exorbitant debt.
I realize the above concerns are relative to the unknown. Most people have a natural fear of the unknown, otherwise known as a fear of change. Deep down I think most people realize that for anything to grow, and prosper even, it has to evolve and change. But, that doesn't neccessarily make it easier. Change should not be accepted simply for the sake of change. It needs to be well planned and executed, especially when it concerns as many people as we are talking about. If this company cannot handle the addition because of the money involved, then we have to be leary.
In addition, there are legitimate concerns about the level of customer service that Fairpoint provides. You regularly hear negative customer service stories from real, existing customers. That has to be a factor with this. With the level of upgrade to the system we are talking about, there will be many issues and questions along the way and it is very important to have a company willing and able to address them. When I hear the stories from people in this state, where they have been operating for years, I get nervous. When I hear stories from other states in which they operate, I get nervous. I hear the big promises they offer and it sounds great and all, but when reality hits can they deliver on the promises. With all the debate on this it seems we have a lot of reasons in front of us to warn of potential problems. Are we then to be surprised if things don't work right under Fairpoint? Can we really believe this company?
I guess only time will tell how the questions are answered. This will play out in its own way and the people of Maine will have no choice but to go along for the ride. Whether the driver remains Verizon or becomes Fairpoint.
The Portland Phoenix's Jeff Inglis addresses very well why Fairpoint is not the company to serve Maine, in an article based on confidential Maine PUC testimony, titled "No raises- it gets better" November 20,2007. Copy and paste the link below into your browsers address bar to view article.
http://thephoenix.com/article_ektid51485.aspx
The article is based on confidential testimony to the Maine PUC from Fairpoint. In the article it states that Fairpoint is buying the property for more than Verizon values the wireline, they expect operating expenses will remain VIRTUALLY FLAT FOR YEARS 2008-2015. That means things like fuel for the trucks, heating costs, electricty for the lights and equipment etc. cannot go up for 7 years. We all know where fuel and heating costs have gone in just the last month how unrealistic. If they have it figured out, I wish they would spread the word. I sure know I would love to have my operating expenses remain virtually flat for the next 7 years. The document also states that deployment of the promised DSL is an assumption, due to the fact they will not have access to detailed plant records until after the sale. That to me says they do not know what they are buying. No raises for employees for 7 years, no retiree health care, no pension. What kind of work force are they trying to retain? Fairpoint also expects an attrition rate of 4% each year, that they will not replace. How long will it take to offset the 675 new jobs promised? Another is that Fairpoints own business model shows share holder equity will decline 590 million dollars from 2008 to 2015 to a negative 452 million. Not a pretty bottom line for any company, let alone one that supports essential services to our state such as E-911. The article is very interesting reading to say the least.
On the page is a link to the full-length redacted confidential testimony from the Office of Public Advocate . If you open the link scroll down the page until you see blacked-out confidential testimony, high-light it, copy it, and paste it into a text document like word. The black-out will disappear and the confidential statements can be seen. This paints a very different picture than the one Fairpoint would have us believe. The commercials may be all warm and fuzzy, but are not reality. Ray please do the research you are known for. This sale is not the right sale for our state and the article only address some of the reasons why...
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