[BC] Phone service, remote controls

[Dana Puopolo]

The rumor out about FiOS is twofold; first they are playing hard ball with
some communities for favored franchise agreements and second they are taking
that money and instead putting it into 4G wireless. Sprint has been making
some improvements lately (especially 4G wise)and they are beginning to be
noticed by the public. Verizon is scared that Sprint will terminate the
current deal they have with Verizon that keeps customers from using Verizon
phones on Sprint (and vice versa). Since both use CDMA, the phones don't
care-they will play equally well on both. In exchange, Verizon offers limited
free roaming on the Verizon network for Sprint customers. As Sprint lights up
more and more sites (as they have been doing the past few years), their deal
with Verizon benefits them less and less.

What's strange is that Verizon has stopped work on FiOS in some communities
that were virtually done. For example here in the L.A. area Verizon has all of
Santa Monica, Brentwood, Venice, Mar Vista and Marina Del Rey wired-yet have
not turned up service there, which makes no sense because these areas are high
income and are served by a weak cable system (Time Warner took it over from
bankrupt Adelphia a few years ago and is still struggling with an antiquated
cable plant there). I'm sure that if they began offering it, most sign ups
would be for the higher priced tiers.

-D

From: Edwin Bukont <ebukont at msn.com>

AT&T has already petitioned the FCC to drop circuit switched services.
 
Verizon has made public their plan to drop CS services within 5-7 years. 
Verizon had also appeared to be quite committed to getting rid of copper, both
of the twisted and coaxial sort in the same period, yet has also recently
halted FiOs plans.  There may be some sort of reality check going on there.