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The challenge

Muzzy Broadcasting is a central Wisconsin radio station group with a storied history and a thriving business. The company operates a trio of stations serving the communities of Stevens Point and Wausau, including news talk outlet WSPT AM — one of the first broadcast stations in the state, starting service in 1948 — along with classic rock/oldies-oriented WSPT FM and country station WKQH FM. WSPT was owned in its early years by US Supreme Court Justices Warren Burger and Harry Blackmun. But the company’s high-speed Internet service provided by the local phone company was a major source of operational static, prone to frequent outages. Often, advertising customers would send important ad spot contracts via e-mail, only to have them disappear into the Internet ether. “All of a sudden it would happen and it would get very frustrating for business,” said station owner Rick Muzzy. “We weren’t getting the reliability that we needed. And at some point in time, it starts to reflect on the credibility of your business.” He didn’t have to look far for a better alternative. For some time, Muzzy Broadcasting had subscribed to Charter Business’ TV service so that its radio news operations could keep up with the latest-breaking national news. Muzzy also had been using Charter’s High Speed Internet service in his home office and therefore had first-hand experience with its speed and reliability.

The solution

So he gave Charter Business a call. Tracy Monson, an inside sales representative, started off by assessing the company’s communications needs. He then quoted a service package at a price that was lower than the existing service but offered much higher bandwidth. “We told him what we were spending before, and he said ‘I can improve on that for you.’ He gave us several options, and he was very respectful in working within our overall budget requirements,” Muzzy said. “So the customer care was very good, and for him it was more important that that was taken care of than the increased dollars for the company.” Muzzy opted for a 10Megabit per second downstream, 1Mbps upstream cable modem service — a considerable boost in bandwidth compared to the older telco service. To complete the triple-play bundle, he also signed up for Charter Business Telephone® service with eight lines and two toll-free numbers. “A plus for us was the Charter Business Bundle®,” Muzzy said. “We knew we could save money by taking all three services.” With the service contract set, the sales rep also took extra steps to coordinate the switchover and account activation. “He was so helpful and wanted to make sure everything was right, that he made the conversion flawless,” Muzzy said. “It was so easy.”

Smooth installation

The conversion itself was handled by two Charter technicians, who systematically went through the entire building, checking the connections and installing the new cable modem telephone media terminal adaptors. They also worked with Muzzy’s phone service provider to ensure a smooth transition from the old phone service to Charter’s. In the 60 days since switching over, the Internet and phone service has proven a vast improvement compared to the old system. “I think the reliability and the dependability has been there,” Muzzy said. With the exception of one brief programming glitch that was quickly remedied, “there have not been any interruptions of any kind in our internet and phone service.”

A neighbor and partner

With a triple-play of voice, data and cable service delivered reliably and economically, it looks like the business relationship between Muzzy Broadcasting and Charter Business has plenty of wattage. Charter also happens to be a longstanding Muzzy advertising customer and frequently partners with the radio group on many local events, and is very active in the community. “They are neighbors like you,” Muzzy said. “They are there, wanting to do a good job. They are wanting to run a good business, and they are good people.”