Fans of the Ardmorons know that Des and I have had...challenges...with our Comcast service, but I am pleased to announce that a "corporate escalation" led to a comprehensive look at our issue which resulted in a replacement of a splice at the street level of our cable, and it appears that the issue has finally been resolved.
And now, interestingly, Comcast has turned its attention to another place, a place where the greatest hero leaps from rooftop to rooftop.
The Gotham Times (Lower right article) reports that "Comcast Gotham won the contract to rebuild Gotham's cable TV infrastructure after a public uproar forced City Hall to open bids for the service."
I'm glad that Comcast is taking such an interest in Bruce Wayne's city, and we all know it needs all the help it can get. However, here in Philadelphia, the city that really needs Batman, companies like Comcast that have committed such significant resources to setting up imperialistic headquarters atop glass palaces could make much more of a serious impact by focusing some philanthropic energies a bit closer to home.
The brand placement in the Dark Knight's viral advertising campaign may be slick or cunning, but it is interesting that the theme of the Gotham Times truly revolves around corruption and excess. In that respect, Comcast's presence is very fitting.
But, for a company like Comcast, whose reputation is a bit less than stellar, and so many others who call Philadelphia home, perhaps it is time to consider how such enterprises can benefit the community in which they squat. And I propose this from a place that originates far from any 'bleeding heart' sentimentality, but rather from a keen business acumen.
As Andy Savitz states, there is an elusive, yet attainable place where the interests of commerce, the environment, and the community converge, and pursuing this pocket will be the last point of differentiation that businesses can find in a world where every product and service becomes more and more commoditized. Modern business depends on finding this precarious pocket.
-S
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Comcast Gotham
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3 comments:
I have RCN cable ... it is A LOT cheaper, and as good as Comcast ... we even get the Comcast Sports Channel, so I can watch my Phillies, Flyers and Sixers.
As you may know, I had a Comcast guy fall on the roof of my car before.
Hey Steve, check this out: http://www.comcast.com/corporate/about/inthecommunity/foundation/comcastfoundation.html
Comcast DOES have its own foundation but they certainly can do better and more philanthropy, ESPECIALLY grantmaking that is specifically focused on the Philadelphia region. Those dudes fork out grants to places all across the country, which is all well and good, but they know full well that their headquarters are just a stone's throw away from the most economically depressed neighborhoods on the East Coast. North Philly, West Philly, Southwest Philly, South Philly... Comcast really needs to step up and show, in a real, tangible way, that it's giving its all to the city of Philly -- and not just by providing jobs, but through their charitable work. Wise philanthropy truly makes your name and your brand live on for a very long time. And if everyone knows your name (in a GOOD way), that's a wonderful thing. -Kay
I think the most educational part of this entry is that we all learned that despite having a full time job, graduate classes, and a live-in girlfriend in law school, Steve makes time to read The Gotham Times, a fictional newspaper about a fictional character in a fictional city. But hey, it probably has less crime than Philly!
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