I donb t usually b single outb a carrier, but today I think Ib ll depart from that edict and pick on a few companies.B We have quite a few customers that use their services, so Ib m not suggesting that theyb re b badb .B Rather, a merger does not come without challenges.
Windstream acquired Nuvox, Paetec (who acquired Cavalier), and Norlight.B This has been interesting since they all had b flavorsb of hosted VoIP.B Windstream has been challenged with deciding which platform will survive.B And, more importantly, what to do with all the customers on the platform that will die a slow death.
Earthlink acquired One Communications and DeltaCom (among others).B They have been trying to work their way deeper into the managed services space.B Thus far, we havenb t found their managed service offerings to be competitive.B A big company usually comes with big overhead.B When new services are b loadedb with all the costs of doing business, it can become cost-prohibitive.
I could go on but, for the sake of brevity, I would just like to point out that there are opportunities being created with every merger.B While the companies doing the merging are hoping to be more competitive, in some instances, they actually create opportunities for the competition.
There are smaller companies that know what they do well and stick with it.B They can be more flexible and, in many cases, less expensive.B While the big companies have the ability to b buyb business with low prices, theyb re finding that profitability is suffering.B And, that is not sustainable.
As a result, they are impacting customers with increased prices and more rigid policies.B Thatb s where we come in.B Due to our relationships with people in decision-making positions within the companies, we have an ear that the customerB doesn’tB have.B If we need to, we use it.B And, thatb s good for our customers!