J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Cincinnati Bell Ranks Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Residential Local Telephone Service Providers for Second Consecutive Year

Business Wire, August 1, 2002

Business Editors

NOTE TO MEDIA: Multimedia assets available

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 1, 2002

Study Shows Substantial Increase in Online Bill Payment Activity

Cincinnati Bell, which provides telecommunications services to parts of Ohio and Kentucky, ranks highest in customer satisfaction among U.S. local telephone service providers for the second consecutive year, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2002 Residential Local Telephone Customer Satisfaction Study(SM) released today.

Cincinnati Bell also ranked highest for the second straight year in long distance among mainstream users in the J.D. Power and Associates 2002 Residential Long Distance Customer Satisfaction Study(SM) which was released last month. This marks the first time a company has clinched awards in both studies two years in a row since the inception of the wireline studies in 1995.

Cincinnati Bell's outstanding overall performance in the Residential Local Telephone Customer Satisfaction Study was reinforced by its strong performance in five of the six key drivers of satisfaction: image, billing, cost of service, performance and reliability, and customer service. The sixth driver of satisfaction is offerings and promotions.

"Cincinnati Bell demonstrates an exceptional ability to resolve problems when first contacted by a customer," said Steve Kirkeby, senior director of the telecommunications practice at J.D. Power and Associates. "As a result, the company has improved its timely resolution of customer problems to an industry-leading 82 percent."

The study shows local telephone service customers continue to visit their carrier's Web site more frequently than in the past -- 13 percent in 2002, up from 9 percent in 2001.

Among Web site users, online bill payment increased dramatically this year, rising from 12 percent in 2001 to 21 percent, and those using the Internet to review a bill increased from 29 percent to 40 percent during the same period.

"We also saw improvement in satisfaction scores for the online billing experience, ranging from how effectively the billing information is displayed to the variety of payment options available," said Kirkeby. "The efforts of local carriers to improve electronic bill payment is very apparent and clearly appreciated by consumers."

The 2002 Residential Local Telephone Customer Satisfaction Study is based on responses from nearly 11,500 households nationwide.

Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, consulting, training and customer satisfaction. The firm's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. Media e-mail contact: michael.greywitt@jdpa.com or john.tews@jdpa.com.

Note: No advertising or other promotional use can be made of the information in this release without the express prior written consent of J.D. Power and Associates. www.jdpa.com.

Note: One chart is available at URL: http://www.newstream.com/us/public_story.html?6680