TCI struggles to work out the bugs in Excite@Home service
Los Gatos is one area affected
By Jeff Kearns
TCI has quietly stopped adding new subscribers to its new cable modem service, Excite@Home, while it tries to chase down the source of the elusive bugs plaguing the network in some Bay Area cities, including Los Gatos.
AtHome kicked off the service Feb. 5, but had to stop signing up new customers earlier this month due to service irregularities that network administrators still can't figure out. Problems range from slow service to no service.
TCI, which was acquired by AT&T last year, is part-owner of Redwood City-based AtHome, which acquired Excite earlier this year. Excite@Home offers its service through TCI's and other cable networks. When it's working, the service connects home computers to the Internet at speeds up to 100 times faster than a 28.8 kbps modem.
According to TCI spokesman Andrew Johnson, subscribers who are already hooked up to Excite@Home are still able to use the network. Even though only about 50 subscribers out of 1,000 have complained about their service, TCI has offered free service to all of its cable modem subscribers in those cities from May to September.
Johnson says Excite@Home stopped signing up new customers because it wasn't meeting the company's internal guidelines.
"We're not happy with the performance of the AtHome service in those six communities only, because it's not meeting the standards we've set out for it," Johnson said.
While customer complaints have been down in the last few weeks, he says, the service won't be offered again for new subscribers until TCI is convinced it's working flawlessly. No subscribers have canceled their service, he said.
TCI offers the service in 47 Bay Area cities, but only Los Gatos, Milpitas, San Mateo, San Carlos, Belmont and Cupertino are affected by the glitch.
TCI doesn't know what's causing the bug. Engineers are in the process of walking the cable lines to check for problems.
"One day people will call and say they're having bad connections, then the next day they'll say it's just great, but meanwhile we haven't changed anything," Johnson said. "It's quite perplexing."
Los Gatos, California Since 1881
