Verizon's (VZ) high-speed customers lose the signal

Verizon (NYSE: VZ)'s new fiber-to-the-home FiOS broadband product is supposed to deliver faster internet speeds than cable. It has a full menu of TV and movies and is a very good service for about the same price as cable.

But a service is only as good as its customer service. A few weeks ago Verizon said it was low on HD set-top boxes. That ultra-clear picture was one of the things that the company was pitching as a competitive advantage. Some customers who signed up couldn't use it.

Now word has come out that the free Sharp TVs that Verizon is giving out to new customers are in short supply.

According to The Wall Street Journal, "The company alerted customers through letters that they will have to wait 10 to 15 weeks -- five weeks longer than previously promised -- for their sets." While every new service has some problems, the Verizon product competes with both cable and satellite TV products. Customer satisfaction has to be critical to not only getting new subscribers but also keeping them.

Maybe someone should have stopped by the warehouse and counted those TVs before the company started that promotion.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.