Louisiana telco CenturyTel rated higher than any other U.S. service provider in a study of online customer service conducted by consulting and research firm the Customer Respect Group. The finding was part of CRG's "First Quarter 2007 Online Customer Respect Study of the Telecommunications Industry."

The study evaluated 54 Web sites as a representative sample of the industry's leading companies across three geographies--the U.S., Canada and The United Kingdom, according to a statement from Boston-based CRG. A common set of criteria--site usability, communication and trust from the customer's perspective--are used to compile a Customer Respect Index (CRI) for each company.

CenturyTel earned a CRI rating of 8.1, well ahead of the industry average of 5.9. AT&T, meanwhile, scored a 7.1, and both Verizon Wireless and Cablevision came in at 6.9. A full industry scorecard and further explanation of the criteria can be found at www.customerrespect.com.