Time Warner, Comcast Rated Least Popular U.S. Companies

(RTTNews) - Two cable giants are America's least popular companies, according to December 2014 edition of the University of Michigan's American Consumer Satisfaction Index.

Time Warner Cable and Comcast, which are planning to merge despite regulatory concerns, are considered the worst companies to deal with.

TWC scored 54 out of a possible 100, while Comcast's ISP and subscription television business fared only slightly better.

Analysts say higher cable bills and frustrating customer service are the main reason the cable companies get singled out, but Verizon FiOS did alright with a score 71/100.

United Airlines, with a score of 60/100, was the lowest rated airline. Customers also grumbled about Wal-Mart (71/100), the least popular of the big-box retailers.

The most popular company was ketchup maker Heinz (87/100). Car makers did surprisingly well in a year marked by costly recalls, as Mercedes Benz (86/100), Subaru (85/100) and Volkswagen (84/100) kept consumers happy.

Here are some of the more prominent American companies along with their scores:

Hershey (86) Google (83) Buick (83) Ford (81) Apple (79) Starbucks (76) Microsoft (75) Facebook (67)