Comcast

This Feb. 11, 2011, file photo, shows the Comcast logo on one of the company's vehicles, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

(Gene J. Puskar)

LANSING, MI -- In 2014, the number of cable customers in Michigan went down, but the number of complaints fielded by the Michigan Public Service Commission about cable providers went up.

The MPSC regulates cable services in the state, and releases an annual report on competition in the cable market. The agency also fields complaints from cable customers about everything from customer service to billing problems.

In 2011, the MPSC fielded 757 complaints from Michigan services about cable companies. That number has climbed steadily, and in 2014 reached 1,574 complaints.

Of those 2014 complaints, 59 percent were about Comcast, 12 percent were about Charter and 11 percent were about AT&T.

The MPSC doesn't have information about how many subscribers each company has, said spokesperson Judy Palnau, because it's considered proprietary. But Comcast does have more subscribers in Michigan than any other company, Palnau said, so it stands to reason that they might have the most complaints.

Comcast Director of Public Relations for Comcast's Heartland Region Randy Jones put the complaints in context.

"Across Michigan each day, we successfully complete tens of thousands of transactions for our customers. Only a small fraction of our subscribers have contacted the MPSC.

Regardless, we take every inquiry seriously and work closely with the Commission staff and those customers who reached out to resolve any concerns. Throughout Comcast, our goal is always to provide an excellent customer experience, and on those occasions where we fall short of the mark, we are committed to making things right every time."

There are 42 cable providers in the state, and there were 2.32 million cable subscribers in 2014. That's down from in 2013, when there were 2.34 million cable customers in the state.

Many Michiganders don't have a choice when it comes to which cable provider they get service from, though choice is increasing.

In 2014, providers reported having one competitor in 666 franchise areas, two competitors in 200 franchise areas and three competitors in three franchise areas.

Satellite providers are not included in the report.

In terms of hard dollars, cable companies are investing a lot in Michigan. Providers reported investing close to $389 million in 2014 and more than $3.1 billion since 2007, when the Uniform Video Services Local Franchise Act took effect.

Emily Lawler is a Capitol/Lansing business reporter for MLive. You can reach her at elawler@mlive.com, subscribe to her on Facebook or follow her on Twitter: @emilyjanelawler.