Comment Occam's scissors says maybe not such a conspiracy (Score 1) 1
He spoke with some sales reps told him that he'll get better streaming performance if he buys more bandwidth.
This is in the same class as:
1. You'll see blazing speed if you add more RAM (but only if you are already using what you already have)
2. Get a bigger engine and your commute time will be slashed (but only if you aren't already limited by speed limits and bumper to bumper traffic)
etc. Sounds to me more like folks who don't understand the problem offering what they think is a real solution. If the customer believes the sales rep, buys more bandwidth, and notices that Netflix performance isn't getting any better he can demand a refund. If more customers did this then Verizon might just educate their sales reps properly.
What I find more annoying is that at least in NYC Verizon no longer offers home DSL greater than about 1 Mbps and no more "naked DSL" installations either, even in areas where FiOS is not available.