MediaBuyerPlanner: In spite of the fact that digital cable services are increasingly gaining subscribers, satellite video providers still get the best marks when it comes to customer service.

A new national survey from J.D. Power & Associates showed that, while DirecTV and EchoStar ranked either first, second or third among all satellite and cable providers in all regions, individual cable companies also received high marks in specific areas, according to MediaPost.

Cox Communications ranked first in the West and second in the East. Wide Open West, a cable over-builder (companies that build systems and sell services in areas where cable companies are already established), had the highest rank in the North Central region and the best numbers of any satellite or cable provider in any region, with 708 out of a possible 1000.

Comcast and Time Warner, the two biggest cable operators, got middle- to below-average scores in most regions.

Digital cable penetration is now at 41 percent of consumers, compared with 31 percent over a year ago, and cable suscribers' average monthly bills dropped $1. Satellite subscribers, on the other hand, reported a $3 increase. Also a plus for digital cable is the fact that 38 percent of cable subscribers have DVRs, while only 25 percent of satellite customers do.