I agree with you to a point, but man there are ways that Comcast and Verizon just can't compete with Municipal. If I want to upgrade a modem I can read some reviews of the best Wifi6 routers or whatnot, or I can ping the guy I know who works for my provider (who also basically introduced me to my partner of 8 years) and get his take on it. The closest thing I've gotten to that with a Comcast person was shooting the breeze about easement rights for his van and how that neighbor calling the cops on him is going to be disappointed.
When I call for support it's some lady a mile away who answers on the third ring, and if I break my modem she apologetically asks if it's OK if somebody's there in an hour to fix it for me for $35.
It's like buying local vegetables except its internet and cheaper. You can't beat it.
You make some good points. I was very focused on speed/price/quality of network service in my post.
This also reflects my own biases and preferences. All I want from an ISP is a reliable uplink at a decent price. The last piece of equipment that is the ISP's is the ONT. I built my own router. I used to have my own DOCSIS modem, but I gave that to a family member a while ago and have had fiber since.
Ideally, I never talk to someone from my ISP. I have had Fios since 2017, and I have only had to talk to them once, to cancel service when I moved. So, as long as I have had Verizon (importantly, in homes that were already wired for Verizon and a competitor), they have been an ideal ISP.
I recognize that my preferences are far from universal, but my original post did not reflect that.
When I call for support it's some lady a mile away who answers on the third ring, and if I break my modem she apologetically asks if it's OK if somebody's there in an hour to fix it for me for $35.
It's like buying local vegetables except its internet and cheaper. You can't beat it.