Will Verizon FIOS take over the Cable Companies?
In the select markets where Verizon has laid out its fiber optic network, otherwise known as FIOS, more and more cable subscribers have been jumping ship. For almost the same price, Verizon has been offering greater speed and reliability compared to cable.
Cable has battled back in response to the competition by offering free services and other incentives, and they have implemented “boost” and metro ethernet technology. They are aiming to double the speed that they are offering now by creating new and improved technology.
Cable companies would still be able to use their existing infrastructure and lines with the new technology, but would allow for upgraded speed. The cable company’s headquarters houses the new system.
Main complaints of cable customers include the size of the bandwidth. Caps were placed on connections due to sustained high usage over a few hours. Recently, cable companies have undone this, but customers have yet to notice. These caps were targeting people that were abusing their internet by using shareware software.
This afflicted many users, including those with boost service; moreover, trying to get uncapped took a lot of effort and time. Add in the issues cable users may have when other users in there area are utilizing the Internet heavily or when there?s bad weather, and the frustration builds.
Going with FIOS alleviates this strife for most people since bandwidth is not an issue. The Fiber Optic networks that Verizon has laid out are almost limitless compared to the cable companies? coaxial copper networks.
Verizon fell behind with installation due to high demand, but the reliability has been for the most part, above average. The best part about the infrastructure being brand new is that there is little to no service interruption once the service is up and running.
Cable companies should be paying close attention to what Verizon is offering through their FIOS service. Changes need to be made in their infrastructure and the first place to start would be with their outdated copper system. Maybe some good could come of their updates if they bundled the old copper and used it in a recycling program.
Filed under: Broadband