Originally published April 13 2005
Verizon increases bandwidth to its basic DSL subscriber service in response to competition
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Internet service provider Verizon Communications is set to double the speed of its basic digital subscriber line service from 1.5 to 3 megabits. Larger bandwidth is available to customers who will subscribe for at least a year or who will bundle the DSL with basic phone service. In addition, Verizon also increased the number of communities in which it will build its FiOS fiber-optic network. FiOS will be able to serve bandwidths of up to 30 megabits per second, as well as cable television packages.
Verizon Communications Inc. ratcheted up the broadband Internet arms race yesterday, doubling the speed of its $30-a-month service while confirming that 11 more Massachusetts communities are getting its new super-fast fiber-optic network.
Verizon's $30 digital subscriber line service will now offer downstream access at up to 3 megabits, up from 1.5 megabits currently and much closer to cable modems, for subscribers willing to sign a one-year contract, or bundle DSL with phone service.
Because of technology limitations, however, only about half of customers whose phone lines can support Verizon DSL will be able to get the faster speed, spokeswoman Bobbi Henson said.
At the same time, Verizon raised to 39 the number of Bay State communities where it has confirmed it is building out its FiOS fiber-optic network, which can deliver Internet access at speeds up to 30 megabits per second.
The $30-for-3 megabits Verizon service compares with $43 for 4 megabits from Comcast, when combined with cable TV. RCN Corp., which serves parts of Boston and 15 suburbs, offers 7- and 10-megabit service bundled with TV and phone service at various rates that are normally several dollars a month less than Comcast's.
Bruce Leichtman, president and principal analyst of Leichtman Research Group in Durham, N.H., which follows the broadband and pay-TV markets, said Verizon's decision to offer ''a compelling price point makes sense.
You look at the audience that is left after 33 million US households have signed up for broadband, and it's a late-adopting audience.
Comcast spokeswoman Jennifer L. Khoury said the cable giant was unfazed by Verizon's most recent moves.
''We set the benchmark for speed, and we've also set the benchmark for broadband content and services like video mail that offer a killer combination to our customers."
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