• by Wayne Friedman , September 26, 2013

U.S. TV program distributors get around a 70% score when it comes to overall customer satisfaction.

Westlake Village, Calif.-based consumer market researcher J.D. Power says consumers give U.S. television services a 699 on a 1,000-point scale. Among homes that have not lost TV signals, the number is higher: 741. Those that have experienced a lost signal tallied a 659 number.

Findings say about two-thirds (67%) of customers have experienced some type of service outage during the past 12 months -- with 51% having a loss of signal.

Other TV signal troubles include picture freezing (38%), post channel picture delay (26%) and picture tiling (19%).

Some of the better-performing TV distributors include those who earned more than a 700 score -- over regional averages: This includes AT&T UVerse (in the North Central, South and West regions of the country); Dish Network (North Central, South, West and East regions); DirecTV  (North Central, South, West and East regions); and Verizon FiOS (South, West and East); and Bright House Networks (North Central and South).

J.D. Power’s research says the average monthly bill for television service is $87 a month.

Research came from 22,593 customers nationwide who were asked about their cable, satellite and Internet protocol (IPTV) television providers. The study was conducted in November 2012, January 2013, April 2013 and July 2013 .