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MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 16, 2014--SubscriberWise® the nation’s first issuing consumer reporting agency for the communications industry and the leading provider of analytics-driven subscriber risk management and rules technology, announced today that the company president David Howe has obtained a perfect Vantage score of 990. The event follows a perfect 850 FICO score obtained by Howe one week earlier.
David Howe reviews a report in his office at MCTV (Photo: Business Wire)
The two perfect scores – mathematically demonstrated and astonishingly rare - offer strong evidence that FICO and Vantage models are correlated among high-percentile scores and granular predictive factors are consistent between the competing algorithms. FICO scores remain the dominant scoring technology in the market today.
“David Howe’s obsession for the highest achievement is not limited to perfect credit scores,” said David Hoffer, chief operating officer for MCTV and vice president for SubscriberWise. “In addition to this remarkable mastery of personal credit, Howe has consistently achieved what may be the lowest bad debt losses on record of any communications operator in North America: .02 as a percentage of revenue at MCTV on sales in excess of $60,000,000.00 annually. And to Howe’s real acclaim, included in this percentage are losses from unreturned equipment,” emphasized Hoffer.
“The success has not gone unnoticed,” continued Hoffer. “Over the past decade, Howe has been consulted by nearly every leading communications operator in the country including Sprint, Time Warner, Mediacom, Metrocast, Atlantic Broadband, Armstrong, Antietam, Comporium, Grande, Cincinnati Bell, BendBroadband, NPG, NewWave, GTA Teleguam, Cable ONE, Shentel, and many others. Howe’s unbridled passion and demonstrated expertise with credit and risk management can be found everywhere in the industry today. Industry-wide the net positive cash flow for operators using SubscriberWise is measured in tens of millions of dollars annually. Perhaps obsession has its rewards,” concluded Hoffer.
Howe is the founder and president of SubscriberWise, the first U.S. issuing consumer reporting agency for the communications industry. Howe is also a consultant and credit manager for MCTV, a multiple system operator founded in 1965 by Richard Gessner. MCTV serves 47,000 subscribers in northeast Ohio. Howe has been employed by MCTV for 18 years.
Howe recently went on the record to share with the public specific details that he hopes will empower consumers and boost credit scores for individuals everywhere. Howe is the first U.S. citizen to describe and report detailed circumstances that generated perfect FICO and Vantage credit scores. The information was provided during an 80-minute interview with Polyana da Costa, senior mortgage reporter for Bankrate.com. Howe also provided additional details to journalist Seth Arenstein that will be reported in a future publication.
“I want to thank Bankrate.com and Polyana da Costa in particular for providing the interview opportunity and helping to disseminate information that she and I agree is valuable for consumers everywhere,” stated David Howe. “I also want to acknowledge that I do not know all things FICO or Vantage. Despite my position with MCTV and SubscriberWise, I’m not expert on everything concerning consumer credit and scoring. But I do understand – profoundly - what events impact my individual consumer reports as well as my personal credit scores. That’s very important. And over the years, I’ve learned how to maximize my personal scores despite the inevitable financial events and setbacks. I want others to know they can achieve the same. I’m hopeful the information I’ve provided Polyana and Seth will help to accomplish this objective.”
“From my professional perspective it’s time to raise the bar on the subject of consumer credit and scores,” Howe emphasized. “Consumers must understand their own credit at a granular level. They should understand at a basic level how business rules and decision management technology impact their lives in ways they may never have imagined. They must understand specific factors that impact their scores, even if the impacts are minimal (fact: a credit report that contains revolving credit card accounts but has no reported revolving balance when the score is calculated can lower a score by 20 points or more). Consumers must know that FICO, Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian do not own the predictive factors; they simply tease-out and refine those factors to add precision to their scoring algorithms. Consumers must understand that no organization and no human being will ever own what is ultimately predictive. Young adults obtaining credit for the first time should also be empowered with this knowledge and information and I plan to continue sharing what I’ve learned with them.”
"David Howe has shared with me such good advice and information on how the credit scoring system works and how to make good decisions to help me keep my credit score optimal," said Christopher Dewald, customer support representative for MCTV and 6-year colleague with Howe. "I feel that education on personal finances and credit is lacking with many younger people and I am glad I've had my conversations with David."
“Credit scores are critically important,” continued Howe. “They impact and control our financial lives. Credit can determine if you can rent a car at the airport, get and maintain a job, obtain the most favorable insurance rates, how much deposit you may pay for phone and cable, or whether you’re able to rent an apartment.
“Credit is not a game but people who don’t play lose,” stated Howe.
“As an experienced credit manager, I argue that every consumer should seek the highest possible credit score and pursue the maximum point-buffer to ensure the most favorable terms and opportunities while navigating life’s financial events. Consumers struggling with difficult financial situations should also focus careful attention on their credit. Everyone should understand that credit can be redeemed no matter the situation or life event. No one should agonize over their credit. There are always options.”
“Finally, it’s time for the certified financial planners and the other ‘experts’ to stop selling America short with the same advice they mimic constantly. Credit is too crucial a subject and we should reject distractions like the recent blog from Credit.com’s Christine DiGangi ( http://blog.credit.com/2014/04/this-guy-put-out-a-press-release-about-getting-a-perfect-credit-score-80430/ ). Although I’ll concede that obsession over maintaining a perfect score is not a healthy or prudent pursuit, I’ll never deny that a deep understanding of the details of one’s personal credit should occupy much more than an occasional concern.”
“FICO, with its trademark displayed conspicuously on its corporate website, announces ‘Make Every Decision Count.’ I couldn’t agree more,” concluded Howe. “Therefore, let’s make every single decision count while also making every single point count.”
About SubscriberWise ( www.subscriberwise.com )
SubscriberWise® launched as the first U.S. issuing consumer reporting agency exclusively for the cable industry in 2006. In 2009, SubscriberWise and TransUnion announced a joint marketing agreement for the benefit of America’s independent cable operators ( http://www.subscriberwise.com/TransUnionJointMarketing.pdf ). Today SubscriberWise is a risk management preferred-solutions provider for the National Cable Television Cooperative.
SubscriberWise is a U.S.A. federally registered trademark of the SubscriberWise Limited Liability Co. The SubscriberWise mark was declared incontestable by the USPTO in 2013.
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available:http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20140416006077/en/
CONTACT: SubscriberWise
David E. Howe, President, 330-880-4848 x137
KEYWORD: UNITED STATES NORTH AMERICA FLORIDA OHIO
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: OTHER CONSUMER TECHNOLOGY INTERNET OTHER TECHNOLOGY PROFESSIONAL SERVICES BANKING FINANCE OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES CONSUMER
SOURCE: SubscriberWise
Copyright Business Wire 2014
PUB: 04/16/2014 12:05 PM/DISC: 04/16/2014 12:05 PM
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