| Even as Wall Street turns bearish on AT&T, IT managers remain remarkably upbeat about the carrier’s service quality, responsiveness and ability to play a major role in IP networking, according to an InternetWeek survey of the carrier’s customers.
AT&T disclosed earlier this month that it won’t meet sales and earnings projections in the current quarter, as growth in its $25 billion business services unit slows to a sluggish 8 percent. At least two major setbacks are to blame: disruptions caused when the carrier shifted some of its largest accounts to its Concert joint venture with British Telecom, and the loss of a federal government contract to MCI WorldCom worth hundreds of millions.
But even as AT&T’s stock price hovers near its 52-week low, enterprises remain firmly in AT&T’s corner. In last week’s survey of 100 AT&T customers, 93 percent characterized their companies as somewhat or very satisfied with the carrier’s service. Fully 50 percent said they haven’t had any problems with AT&T in the past year; just 9 percent said they’re dissatisfied with most of AT&T’s service or responsiveness. |
