By David Salway – About.com
Verizon Strategy Reflects Plan to Upgrade Copper From DSL Service to FiOS
Facing criticism from residents in rural areas of the country for abandoning upgrades to aging copper network infrastructure, Verizon executives announced plans to replace copper broadband technology damaged by Hurricane Sandy with newer and faster fiber-based networks.
The company’s DSL upgrade strategy of foregoing expensive copper network upgrades in lieu of offering customers the choice of signing up for its 4G wireless home broadband service branded as HomeFusion, is a deliberate plan to increase revenues from its broadband customers, while avoiding costly upgrades to an obsolete type of broadband technology. Verizon’s long-planned launch of home broadband service powered by its constantly expanding LTE wireless network was basically a decision to trade in ground copper for more expensive wireless technology.
Although the strategy would seem like a winning one for both the company and consumers – there is a significant downside for Verizon’s existing DSL customers. In order to trade slower wireline broadband service for faster and more widely available wireless service, customers must pay a costly premium.