First-order effects

• Comcast gains a third revenue stream on existing plant; Qwest loses a top-tier ranking and faces accelerating landline erosion from a competitor that doesn't even run a copper network.
• Incumbent telcos' voice bundles become the immediate battleground, since Comcast can price digital voice as an incremental margin product within a triple-play package.

Second-order effects

• Telcos are pushed harder toward their own broadband upgrades (fiber/DSL overbuilds) and aggressive pricing just to hold bundle customers, compressing margins industry-wide.
• Cable's triple-play economics prove out, encouraging other MSOs to scale VoIP aggressively and shifting competitive pressure from video (where satellite still competes) to voice and broadband.

Third-order effects

• The distinction between 'cable company' and 'phone company' collapses: connectivity providers converge on selling the same broadband-voice-video bundle regardless of underlying network, setting up the regulatory question of whether VoIP should face telco-style obligations.
• Voice becomes a commodity attach rate while broadband becomes the anchor product — a trajectory visible years later when Comcast's subscriber base crossed over so its broadband customers outnumbered TV subscribers entirely.