{"id":8271,"date":"2020-10-09T03:48:27","date_gmt":"2020-10-09T07:48:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shorebeat.com\/lavallette-seaside\/?p=8271"},"modified":"2020-10-09T03:48:27","modified_gmt":"2020-10-09T07:48:27","slug":"barrier-island-officials-residents-decry-internet-access-problems-altice-increases-bandwidth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shorebeat.com\/lavallette-seaside\/2020\/10\/barrier-island-officials-residents-decry-internet-access-problems-altice-increases-bandwidth\/","title":{"rendered":"Barrier Island Officials, Residents Decry Internet Access Problems; Altice Increases Bandwidth"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Optimum store, owned by Altice, in Seaside Heights, N.J. (Photo: Daniel Nee)<\/p><\/div>\n

With more people than ever working from home, especially at the Jersey Shore, internet access has become central to one\u2019s ability to remain connected in the age of social distancing. The demand has led to a slew of complaints from elected officials in multiple island communities, whose constituents have complained about insufficient service and surprise bills from Altice, the French telecom company that operates the Optimum brand of cable services.<\/p>\n

The complaints have ranged from slow speeds to frequent service interruptions and modem resets. The mayors of both Lavallette and Seaside Heights \u2013 as well as Toms River officials \u2013 have pressed Altice for answers in recent months, with Seaside Heights even forming a committee to represent their interests to the company. An Altice representative appeared before the Seaside Heights council this week via teleconference, announcing news of increased bandwidth for the \u201cSeaside\u201d region, as it is called, and pledging to take better care of customer issues.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of the issues is on the network side and some of the issues are on the customer behavior side,\u201d said Marilyn Davis, Director of Government Affairs for Altice.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we pulled the data, we did see that most areas that have issues had them arise in April and May, at the height of Covid,\u201d said Davis. \u201cWe realized that people are moving to the Shore.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the final week of September, she said, Altice deployed additional capacity to its Seaside network. The company added 28 downspeed nodes and six upspeed nodes.<\/p>\n

\u201cEssentially, we added 28 lanes to the highway going down and six lanes going up,\u201d said Davis.<\/p>\n

A group of residents who came to the meeting said that the company has not done enough to improve service, and asked the borough to take action that could include a review of Altice\u2019s franchise agreement \u2013 the legal document passed by ordinance that regulates the company\u2019s ability to provide service within the town\u2019s borders.<\/p>\n

Chris D\u2019Amico, leader of the committee formed by Seaside Heights, said the issues go beyond speed. Connections are often lost and the quality is inconsistent, he said, accusing the company of charging customers a $75 service fee as a way to dissuade people from calling to complain. Davis said the fee should only be charged when a connection issue involves issues with lines inside someone\u2019s home.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen techs come, even if the situation has nothing to do with their home, they\u2019re being charged $75 to come out and look at boxes,\u201d said D\u2019Amico. \u201cIt has nothing to do with boxes \u2013 it has to do with the poles. They\u2019re not maintained.\u201d<\/p>\n

Making matters worse, Altice\u2019s office on the Boulevard in Seaside Heights \u2013 its only office in the entire county outside of Lakewood \u2013 has been closed for months with \u201cno explanation,\u201d officials said. Davis did not say when, or if, the office would reopen.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery resident of Seaside Heights and the entire barrier island has the same issue,\u201d said Pat O\u2019Neal, another resident who came to Wednesday\u2019s meeting.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Neal said he pays for 400 Mbps internet service and has seen speeds drop as low as 0.29 Mbps.<\/p>\n

\u201cBusinesses are concerned because many security cameras are connected to WiFi,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Davis said residents can communicate with local officials, but may be better served by using one of four communication channels to contact Altice.<\/p>\n

Customers can:<\/p>\n