WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. – J.D. Power and Associates has ranked Cox Business No. 1 nationwide among providers of data solutions to small and mid-sized businesses, in its annual Major Provider Business Telecommunications Study.

The survey measured customer satisfaction with providers of telecommunications data services, whether via cable modem, DSL, T1, T3/DS3, ethernet or frame relay. Rankings are based on six key factors; they are (from most to least important) performance and reliability; sales representatives/account executives; billing; cost of service; offerings and promotions; and customer service

In responses from companies with two to 499 employees, the business division of Cox Communications scored particularly well in performance and reliability; sales representatives/account executives; billing; cost of service; and customer service. It received lower scores in offerings and promotions, the fifth of the six factors.

Its overall Customer Satisfaction Index of 651 points was the highest among data-service providers of all types; the average rating assigned to major providers by small and mid-size customers was 600. Cox also was No. 1 among small to mid-size customers in J.D. Powers’ 2006 data-service provider survey. (It was not rated in the large-customer category, due to small sample size, J.D. Power said.)

“Businesses rely on data services to link to critical information sources, key suppliers, remote work sites and customers,” Kristine Faulkner, vice president of product development and management for Cox Business, said in a statement yesterday. “Cox remains focused on delivering a broad portfolio of reliable solutions.”

In the large business segment – companies with 500 or more employees – Qwest ranked highest in customer satisfaction, receiving high scores in performance and reliability; sales representatives/account executive; billing; cost of service; and offerings and promotions. It did less well in customer service.

Qwest received a Customer Satisfaction Index of 560 among small to mid-size businesses, the lowest of any major provider, but a rating of 692 among large businesses, which had an average score of 665.

Verizon Communications Inc. was No. 2 with businesses of all sizes, the survey company said. It received a Customer Satisfaction Index of 640 among small to mid-size businesses and 679 among large businesses.

Among other findings, J.D. Power said, the cost of telecom data services for small and mid-size businesses has declined over the past year. About 81 percent of respondents in that segment are paying less than $1,000 per month for data services, down from 76 percent a year ago. And 50 percent of small and mid-size businesses intend to bundle data with other telecom services, up from 48 percent last year, the survey found.

“Some providers have lowered prices in order to maintain their market share – which is good news, especially for small and mid-size businesses that are particularly vulnerable to the financial pressures associated with the current economy,” Frank Perazzini, director of telecommunications at J.D. Power, said in a statement.

Switching of service providers has declined slightly among businesses of all sizes, the survey found. This year, 8 percent of small to mid-size businesses said they had switched providers, down from 10 percent last year.

Among large enterprises, 14 percent said they had switched providers in the past year, down from 17 percent in 2007. Thirty-eight percent said it would be “somewhat difficult” to switch, up from 22 percent last year.

“Switching data service providers is not always cost effective for large businesses that have many employees and locations to consider,” Perazzini said. The expense of making and coordinating such a changeover “make it more likely that many businesses will wait to change providers until they have a handle on the economic outlook for their company and the major [service] providers.”

The 2008 Major Provider Business Telecommunications Study is based on responses from 2,422 U.S. business customers receiving telecommunications data services. It includes evaluation of their own data-service providers. The survey was conducted by J.D. Power this March and April.

J.D. Power and Associates – a unit of The McGraw-Hill Cos. – is a global market research, forecasting, training and performance improvement firm. Its quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers per year. Additional information, including regional rankings of telecom data service providers, is available at www.jdpower.com.

Cox Communications – a wholly owned subsidiary of Fortune 500 company Cox Enterprises – is a broadband communications and entertainment company with more than 6 million business and residential customers nationwide including about 450,000 basic cable subscribers in New England. Its Cox Business division provides voice, data and video services to more than 240,000 business customers nationwide. Additional information is available at www.cox.com and www.coxbusiness.com.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) is a New York-based Dow 30 company that delivers broadband and other communications services to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers through its Verizon Wireless and Verizon Wireline divisions. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.