Verizon shelves plans for future FiOS rollouts, relocations to Massachusetts set to boom
By Darren Murph 
posted March 27th 2010 8:28AM
posted March 27th 2010 8:28AM
'Tis fun while it lasted, yeah? Verizon's FiOS has provided a much-wanted (or much-needed, some would argue) sliver of competition in markets that were previously offered just one or two ISP options, and the wicked fast speeds available through the fiber-based service were just one big stream of cherries-on-top. We've personally noticed that the company has slowed down the rate at which it blasts out releases trumpeting new FiOS and FiOS TV markets, and now we know why: an Associated Press report notes that the operator has canned all public plans about expanding its FTTH home network, though it will continue to build-out where it had previously announced service (Washington, D.C., New York City and Philadelphia, namely). Of course, Verizon never stated that it would be making FiOS a nationwide service, but after hitting at least some sections of 18 states, we had high hopes that it would keep on keepin' on. Unfortunately, it looks like you'll be forced to move to FiOS-heavy Massachusetts, or simply gaze endlessly from your apartment window knowing that you'll never feel the warm glow of a FiOS wire. Sniffle.
I've got 35/35 Fios in VA, with their top TV package (minus HOB/CInemax), for $110/mo. Comcast isn't even close to competing on price/performance here.
@gFiz
Same here in NYC. Got TV with all channels + movie package except Epix + 25/15 internet and getting 25/25 24/7. With TWC the same bundle would cost me $170+
Getting Fios installed tomorrow. I LOL at your misfortunes.
No but seriously, my city's franchise was approved last April, and construction began in Aug/Sept. It had to be one of the last "tier 2" cities they agreed to build. I consider myself pretty lucky we got in at the last minute.
They gotta improve their signups to continue a rollout in the future. Problem is, they're shooting themselves in the foot a little bit there. If I weren't already checking in on availability every week, I wouldn't have even known it was available. They haven't sent us any Fios advertisements by mail or anything. I see the ads targeting Comcast on TV (from philly market stations), but Comcast is not in our particular city, so.... all in all it's been a limp effort thus far here. They're not trying as hard as they should be.
@vgsmike
Same here. It was available in my town around 1.5 years ago, but took them a year to make it to my street. I had called a few times and had my name added to the list to be notified when they got to my street, but received nothing. Around 6 months ago I was randomly checking the Fios site and put my address in and it was magically available. The service and customer service have been great so far, but the rollout plan seems haphazard.
Maybe after they sell off the old GTE areas they'll have some cash to finish up some areas.
Fios has been amazing, I had optimum online and road runner... uggh both terrible, ool wasn't to bad but at peek hours it got pretty slow. Once fios rolled in my neighborhood, switched right away, no problems whatsoever, my service plan is 15/5 but I get 20+/15+. Almost everyone on my block has the fios panel on the side of the house.
I would trade U-verse for FIOS any day, but it doesn't look like that will ever happen. Skipped right over CT!
Sooo....When is it coming here to Nova Scotia?
Answer: never. Crap.
in the article they mentioned going nationwide, i thought the whole country was divided in zones where all the big players own sections of it, i live in iowa and i think i have Qwest and Mediacom, both of them blow butt really bad. wish these guys could've come down here and throw their hats in the game
I'm in Ma. and no FIOS in my neighborhhood.
I live in the Boston area, slummerville actually. They have been telling me they will be adding Fios "next year" for as long as I can remember, but I can sign up for dsl if i want. It's like they set up those damn displays and booths in the mall just to mock me.
I live in Mass. and switched to Fios last year from the incredibly lousy Charter Communications. Mass. is a bastion of splintered, ancient cable monopolies, with an arcane state law that forces a new competitor to negotiate with each town for a license to provide service in that town. Fios has provided real competition, with better quality phone, internet, and TV service than the cableco's. Just as an example, I had Charter cable for 5 years. At the end Charter had a grand total of 35 HD channels available (many were premium channels). Fios has more than 100. Charter barely bumped up internet speeds over the 5 years as well, and its pricing was ridiculous. The real question is what happens to Fios pricing after the 2-year guaranteed lock-up period ends.
I can foresee the Mass. advertising campaign: Come to Mass. for the high taxes and corruption, stay for the world class education, health care, and Fios!
In Albany we have FiOS internet and phone but no tv yet, which makes me sad.
@backfire103 They're probably just waiting on approval from the city council. My town (Poughkeepsie) had Fios internet and phone for quite a while before the TV franchise got approved by the town board. It's too bad they don't have NFL Sunday Ticket so I could drop DirecTV and go all Fios
I had it all in California, now I moved back to Michigan and I'll never have it.... sad panda
I'm in Holden, MA, a "upscale" town near Worcester and there's no FiOS here...or dsl for that matter. The only option we have is Charter. Kind of annoying.
Darn. Now who is going to kill Time Warner Cable in Kansas City?
@Smurf
Nobody. Now TWC will probably rollback their speeds to celebrate not having any future competition.
So no love for us in NYC (Queens to be exact)?? I'm fine with my 10mb down with Earthlink (best ISP i've ever had), just wish i could get better upload speeds (better than crappy 412kbps)...
VERIZON DOES THE SAME THING EVERY TIME THE INTRODUCE SOMETHING NEW.
THEY REPLACE ALL THE CABLE'S ON THE POLES, BUT THE LEAVE THE OLD LOOP AND PROTECTION FROM THE POLE TO THE HOUSE. THIS CAUSES INTERFERENCE. ON YOUR TV, AND COMPUTER.
YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER SOME OF THESE CABLES HAVE BEEN ATTACHED TO THE HOUSE FOR MORE THEN 20 YEARS
OK, so every penny they charged for the new FIOS rollout in my area - I'd like back in a check please. They had been advertising and promising FIOS in the Pittsburgh area for the last 3 years. I live less than 1/2 a mile from a Verizon hub and substation. I canceled the DSL service when they sent 3 lines guys to my house and still couldn't figure out why the DSL dropped 500+ times a day. I want all the $$ back that I paid when I had Verizon's DSL and phone service. What a load of shit.
@chinmas I think we're all in the exact same boat. I've had the same ISP service for the last decade and the speeds haven't gone up but the price has. I'd switch to the one competitor but their service is just as bad.
Talk about monopoly, I'd pay for any service that would deliver what they promise but nothing like that exists in this country and won't any time soon.
They have apparently been working on puting FiOS in my neighborhood that's not in Massachusetts. Is that going to stop now? It better not. Comcast is going down!
Everyone in the industry knew Verizon couldn't keep building out with fiber.
It works this way. At the current price to install it, and the current take rate (customers) it takes 30 YEARS to pay off the initial build IF the customer doesn't leave and IF they don't have to price down the product to keep him/her from leaving FIOS.
Even U-verse is a money losing proposition. But both Verizon and at&t did this to keep their stock prices from plummeting once wall street figured out they both had nowhere to go but down with no new products.
You can blame the old guard Phone guys from 20 years ago for this.
If they had started slowly back then upgrading they could have afforded the cost to slowly roll out video services of the entire phone system footprint. But they where all to lazy and stuck in their ways. And now they will pay for it.
The only thing that kept them from going under was wireless.
Don't you guys know that New York is the only really important state in this so called union.
I am absolutely crushed beyond words.
I hate Comcast more than anything in this world and it's my only option.
This is the most devastating news I've read in the last 10 years.
I've got FiOS in Dallas and it's great! It's a shame they won't share the love
Verizon is pathetic. They were supposed to role out FIOS in Bel Air, CA about 6 months ago... Never happened. now i know why. Verizon are being cheap bastards who don't reinvest in infrastructure now. They are prepared to just sit and not reinvest. they stopped doing Capital Expenditures on this and as a customer of theirs ... i just think its BS.
Getting 25 down and 5 up in Jersey + unlimited calling + long distance for $65 with Verizon and loving it.
My entire city got a FIOS rollout, Except a few parts which I happen to live in one. Our association asked Verizon when we'll get it, all they say is "soon". Guess this answers my worst fears, Oh well 3.5mb down 300kb up FTL.
What happens when the promo for Verizon is over though? Comparisons would be really interesting then!
would this possibly have anything to do with Google's forthcoming fiber service?
http://techcrunch.com/2010/03/27/the-final-tally-more-than-1100-cities-apply-for-googles-fiber-network/
They have it in West-Coast Florida, but not East-Coast FL. I'm not sure why, as we're stuck with crappy Comcast and AT&T U-Verse, where both are equally bad.
Im glad they installed it in the Tampa Bay area before they decided to put the kabosh on it or I would still be stuck with Brighthouse and they're spotty internet speeds.
I have been hesitating on FIOS since a friend in RI told me they could never get his bill correct. He had to call every month to get it corrected. After three months he gave up and canceled. They threatened him with the ETF and he said "I don't care".
Anyone else having billing issues?
So now one thinks this has anything to do with the new broadband initiative that they are working own currently?
right now Verizon pays to lay cable all over the neighborhood, out of there own pocket, if they stop now and wait for the government to put in place policies where the government pays for most if not all cost to lay those same cables, then they do not pay out of pocket we do, cmon people wake up!
im in new york, staten island to be exact and we just switched to fios from TWC. we are gettin way more and saving almost $70 a month!!!
OK, so basically home Internet speeds have maxed out. What you see to day is what we're stuck with.
Yay, just another arena in which the once-mighty United States can fail and decline.
Had FIOS out in the DC 'burbs. Only Data and Phone, as I was an early adopter and they didn't have TV at the time.
Now that I am in the midwest I am stuck with Comcast (or AT&T, which I don't think would work too well in my 30 old house and its associated wiring).
Miss the Data speed, but I do have to say that when I was at family member's houses that had the TV it was kind of spotty in it functionality. Esspecially the "Whole House DVR" feature. It plays but that system loses communication with the DVR box fairly often. It also, last I heard at least, does not allow proper commerical skipping or FF/RWD features. Hopefully that is better now..
I live in a Massachusetts town that has FIOS... but my street doesn't. I live in a newer neighborhood that has all of the phone/cable under the street. Apparently, Verizon has no desire to pull fiber to our houses. :-(
Nooooooo!!!
*sobs*
It's 20-frickin-10 and still the best I can get in my neighborhood is 8meg comcast for 70 bucks or 6meg dsl for 45 bucks. I'm in a city of nearly a million! I need competition!