WICHITA — Nationally, Cox is looking to offer customers new services for their land lines, but before moving ahead with potential upgrades the company is asking 300 Wichitans what they think.
Wichita is a test market for Cox Premium Communications, which includes advanced phone features such as the ability to transfer calls between wireless and home phones.
Potentially, customers also could choose if they want their land lines to ring at home or if they’d prefer calls to come through their wireless phones.
“They chose Wichita, Kansas . . . to ask customers, ‘Hey, do you like this? Does this work well for you?’ ” says Cox Communications Kansas spokeswoman Sarah Kauffman.
She says Wichita is “very well suited for the trial.”
That includes operationally.
“We raise our hand every time there is a new technology,” Kauffman says of testing products.
In other markets, Cox is testing its wireless phones.
Kauffman says Cox could start wireless service here by late 2010.
10 Comments
Just say NO to Cox…
Wasn’t Cox the ones putting commercials on tv talking about AT&T “playing” TV company? Now cox wants to play Cell phone company??? Amusing huh?
Cox, who doesn’t have to play by any of the same rules as AT&T does when it comes to telephone now wants to continue its venture into the phone world…
Oh, and just an FYI… All Cox’s cell service will be is resold Sprint service…
On, and Cox is a major opponent to the recently passed Netnutrality Act that allows us to maintain a free and open Internet.
Again, Say NO to Cox.
“Oh, and just an FYI… All Cox’s cell service will be is resold Sprint service…”
Why would Cox buy wireless spectrum then?
“Cox, who doesn’t have to play by any of the same rules as AT&T does when it comes to telephone now wants to continue its venture into the phone world…”
For example?
“On, and Cox is a major opponent to the recently passed Netnutrality Act that allows us to maintain a free and open Internet.”
Are you dumb? Billions spent on a service and now lets let everyone mess it up.
Not going to comment on Cox pro or con, but I can perhaps at least clear up some things for joe95neon:
I’d imagine the “playing by the same rules” bit refers to the fact that there’s a current ruckus over whether things like Google Voice and I assume some of Cox’s telephone-like services should have to play by the same rules as a real telco. (The real problem is that some of the telco rules are broken, leading to odd cases like traffic pumping and such.)
And if you’re a consumer against net neutrality, then you don’t understand net neutrality:
http://www.ohgizmo.com/2009/10/29/net-neutrality-what-it-could-mean/
“Oh, and just an FYI… All Cox’s cell service will be is resold Sprint service…”
Actually this is true. Cox used Sprint in their failed launch of wireless a few years back (Pivot) and are using them again this time. The only difference is customer support is through Cox’s own CSR’s not Sprints. It will be a few years before Cox uses the wireless spectrum they bought in the auction.
Cox is against net neutrality 100% Any internet provider is, as they could make much more money if they could get the rules changed. Lucky for the consumer, that hasn’t happened, YET.
http://wireless.fcc.gov/auctions/default.htm?job=auction_summary&id=73
Cox spent $304 Million for 22 winning bids, winning licenses in Block A of the 700 mhz band (Auction 73). They paid $7,801,000 for the Wichita KS-OK market.
They are currently building their own infrastructure. Suppliers and contractors are under non-disclosure agreements.
It’s funny that you say Cox is ‘playing’ telephone co… At&t stands for American Telephone and Telegraph, they now provide video services. Cox Communications should cover TV, internet, home phone, and yes, cell phones as forms of ‘communication’ last time I checked.
Folks, I hate to tell you this, but the days of companies doing one particular thing are over. Everyone is diversifying and trying to find new revenue streams. Don’t confuse advertising propaganda (”Playing TV Company”) with corporate reality.
So.. they’re pretty much copying Google Voice but charging for it? Yeah, that’ll go well.
Yeah, too bad that it won’t work, like everything else cox does.