Verizon Taking FTTP Installation Orders 624
ooglek writes "Verizon is now qualifying and accepting installations for FTTP (Fiber To the Premises)! $39.95 for 5MB/2MB, $49.95 for 15MB/2MB, and $199.95 for 30MB/5MB. No word yet on whether Verizon will block ports (25, 80, etc) for incoming or outgoing traffic; with 2MB upload, I hope to basically run a small data center in my basement. Both phone and Internet will come through the fiber, and there is an unofficial rumor of video services as well by the end of this year. Got Fiber? My install date is November 2nd in Falls Church, VA (near DC). Several people in Keller, Texas have posted pictures and reported 14,679 kbps download and 1,794 kbps download speeds." Update: 10/26 23:52 GMT by T : That second "download" ought probably read "upload."
Form doesn't work for me (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Form doesn't work for me (Score:5, Funny)
Actual conversation with Verizon:
Verizon: Yes, we're very excited about this service. What's your phone number.
Me: *Give my phone number*
Verizon *silence*: Let me speak with my manager. *comes back a little while later* Where did you hear about our FIOS service?
Me: Uh, an internet site called "Slashdot". Lots of tech news.
Verizon: We were wondering. I've been getting calls all day. We only have FIOS in test markets right now like Florida, Texas... rattles off a few more names.
Me: Any idea when you're going to support the NY metropolitian area?
Verizon: I'm sorry, I don't know at this time.
/. the call center (Score:5, Funny)
Has a call center ever been slashdotted before?
Re:/. the call center (Score:5, Funny)
Actually, yes. http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/09/14/12312
Re:Pricing makes no sense. (Score:3, Funny)
Ever fly business class? You pay 4 times as much for 50% more room.
Re:Form doesn't work for me (Score:5, Interesting)
Sorta a pity how they are stifiling innovation in this state -- as I watch one of AT&T's former largest test centers be demolished piece by piece. (which managed to hold on for quite a while after the breakup, but is sadly no more...)
Re:Form doesn't work for me (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Form doesn't work for me (Score:5, Insightful)
My understanding, based solely on reading the forums at dslreports.com is that Verizon wants monopoly rights to the fibre they are laying. As in no second source ISP like Covad or Earthlink would be able to lease bandwidth or connectivity on the fibre lines at (low) state-set rates, like they are able to today on the copper lines.
Based on that, I think Verizon is in the wrong. They are dangling shiny trinkets of high-speed internet at a reasonable price in order to distract people from the inevitable long-term result of monopoly control over public works - erosion of price competitiveness and technological stagnation.
Sure, 15MBps at $50 looks GREAT today, but will it be that great in 5 years? What if the price goes up to $100? Pay no attention to the details behind the curtain!
Again, without knowing more than I've read at the forums, I think that if it were up to me, I'd be looking at a compromise. Verizon can have monopoly control over the fibre network with three caveats:
1) A viable competitor exists in each segment (neighborhood, town, whatever) such as cable which is priced within say 20% for equivalent levels of performance.
2) They agree to a more relaxed test for market collusion than what the FTC/DoJ uses in order to absolutely prevent Verizon and whoever their local competitor(s) are from abusing their certain oligopoly. Punishment for collusion being immediate and permanent loss of control of all the fibre in the area in which the collusion occurred plus enough of a geographical radius to cover enough more customers to equal 200% of the total affected. (The state would probably assume control and lease it back to Verizon and any other ISPs.)
3) Yearly review of their performance with a regular 5-year major examination of their quality of service and evaluation of their technological currentness.
These all assume that the details are worked out by Verizon and a team of negotiators for the state that are not biased by bribery of any sort (no cushy jobs at Verizon 6 months after the contracts are signed).
I am a big believer in "free markets" - as long as care is taken to prevent monopolistic abuses that can naturally arise in a loosely regulated market. But, public utilities are a natural monopoly and so special care, much better care than is usually applied, must be taken to keep a check on the monopolistic business practices that inevitably settle in. To do otherwise would be the equivalent of giving Verizon a money pipeline into the community's bank accounts.
Re:Form doesn't work for me (Score:5, Insightful)
They are laying it on public land with forced easements. Very different from building something on land they own. The fiber is there because the public (i.e., the government) enabled it.
+5 Informative!!!? (Score:4, Insightful)
The fiber is there because the public (i.e., the government) enabled it.
Who the hell cares if the government enabled it, Verizon is spending the millions of dollars and putting in the time to make this possible. They should have monopoly rights on their investment and hard work. The government also "enables" stadiums to be built, large office buildings to be built, etc. The government doesn't then force the owners of Madison Square Garden to rent it out at a government-regulated rate. The government doesn't force the owners of the Empire State Building to lease out office space at a government-regulated rate.
The owners of these buildings (and other such properties or services) rent them out because it is in their financial interest to do so. The rate at which they are rented out is set by the fair market value. If it is in Verizon's interest to lease out their fiber lines then they will do so and the fair market value will determine the rate. We don't need the government stepping in to tell Verizon that XYZ is the rate that they can lease their fiber at and there's nothing they can do about it.
What we need is less regulation, not more of it.
Re:+5 Informative!!!? (Score:5, Funny)
Maybe not all of them are Somali warlord-style libertarians?
I the hell care. It's largely public land. That's how it goes. I pay taxes for the maintenance of this land, and I don't want my tax money subsidizing Verizon if the result is not going to be advantageous to the public. If you don't like that, then invent a way for Verizon to roll out this product that doesn't depend on using my resources. I hear quantum computing is all the rage.
Red herring. The Empire State Building doesn't have a monopoly on commercial real estate in Manhattan.
Do you understand what eminent domain is? (Score:4, Informative)
Verizon is laying the fiber along other people's property. It has the right to do this by virtue of government action: easements (rights to use someone else's land in a particular way) granted by way of or under threat of eminent domain (government-imposed surrender of property rights). Verizon (or Bell, long ago) used a special relationship with the government to get what it has, and so does not have the right to use it in an unregulated fashion.
Removing controls from large companies while letting them keep their special government-granted advantages does not create a free market. Free-market advocates who fail to understand this create broken economic systems when they succeed and give us all a bad name even if they don't. Please don't be one of them.
Fios Availability. (Score:5, Informative)
1) First off, the Number that the script tells you to call (the (888) 662-8275 one) is wrong according to the person that I got on that line. She directed me to (888) 991-4999. Whether or not that's the right number for overall rollout I dont know, but it had all the answers I got. Not that you'll need to call after reading this.
2) From what she was seeing, it's still only available in the Texas area where it was deployed for it's Pilot Program. She wouldn't confirm where they were expanding the service, but she did confirm that it is going to expand in the coming months because it was very successful in the pilot program apparently.
3) She said that availability will be announced in your Verizon bill (If you get one) as soon as it's available in your area (probably to cover the costs of the equipment). the web site also will tell you about availibility whenever it's updated, but for right now it's Texas only.
Re:Fios Availability. (Score:4, Funny)
-kaplanfx
Pricing looks good (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:4, Interesting)
Feel special. DSL here is 2048/256 for a bit under $60 here. Cable (with all its port blocking glory) is $39.99/mo for 3000/256.
I would do ANYTHING for inexpensive high bandwith connections. I don't even care about the upstream. Just give me reasonable speeds downstream with reliable service. No random disconnects, hours and hours of downtime w/o anyone to fix the problem, and crappy DSL routers required.
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:3, Informative)
How about satellite [direcway.com]?
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:3, Insightful)
The software for my roommate's digital camera was a 125 MB download from HP. Using this for anything like installing or upgrading a Linux box is out of the question. I've seen 50 MB government documents doled out like candy.
Ergo, as long as the world keeps getting more byte-bloated, the technical limitations of
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:3, Informative)
I got the 15/2 service and it's great.
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:5, Funny)
Allow me to translate this: "I download a lot of porn on Bit Torrent any my ratio is terrible"
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:3, Funny)
Then again, maybe the GP poster is the one confused.
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:2)
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:3, Informative)
In Japan (Score:5, Informative)
Okay, I'll stop bragging now (:
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:5, Informative)
Jaysyn
Re:One question.. (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Pricing looks good (Score:5, Insightful)
Because (just like every other service) they are over selling.
People who buy the 5/2 pipe will tend to not use it all the time. They can toss hundreds of people on and still get their speeds.
People who buy the 30/5 pipe WILL tend to use it, because they are hosting, or running some sort of service where they can afford the extra cash. Therefore they cannot get shared pipe, and they pay for the full thing.
It isn't a price inflation for the high-bandwidth option. It is a discount for the low bandwidth option.
Or alternitavely from the economic perspective
Prices have nothing to do with actual costs. People who need the extra bandwitdh are likely willing to pay more, therefore they are charged more. The joy of elasticity of demand, and low competetion.
Re:But it's still not internet service... (Score:3, Insightful)
Funny, until a few years ago, nearly all Internet-based applications (and hence, traffic) was definitely server-client based. HTTP, SMTP, POP, DNS, all server-client. With the recent advent of P2P apps, that may have changed in terms of raw traffic, but just because one person downloads a single 4 GB ISO hardly out-weighs the fact that another 100,000 have sat down in that time frame and used distinctly client-server applications.
If you don't have a "always on", syncronous conn
Sustainable speed? (Score:4, Insightful)
So how long will the 15/2Mbps last, and is Verizon at least giving guarantee on a minimum sustainable speed?
Re:Sustainable speed? (Score:2)
Yeah, parent post makes a good point. Sometimes congestion on the Internet can slow light down quite a bit...
Re:Sustainable speed? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Sustainable speed? (Score:3, Informative)
I've seen providers with bandwidth and latency guarantees before. But, keep in mind that:
1. They only guarantee bandwidth within their own network, and under certain conditions
2. They only guarantee latencies within their own network
3. They only guarantee bandwidth and latency a certain percentage of the time, not 100%.
4. They are usually very expensive
5. Your recompense if they don't meet the guarantees are minimal.
As far as items 1 and 2, you really just can't do anything else. Company A sim
Monthly costs? (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Monthly costs? (Score:3, Informative)
That is wierd (Score:3, Insightful)
But why would these lines come in 5Mb/2Mb and not just 5/5 ?
Re:That is wierd (Score:5, Insightful)
Immagine that you were a business owner and you could buy three of these (cheap) and a pair of backup T1 lines (not that expensve) to replace your OC3 (very expensive). Bad news for their profits.
I wonder what the transfer cap on these things is? Probably something rediculous like 1gb/day that allows you to operate your line at full speed for all of 550 seconds before you exceed your quota and get terminated.
Re:That is wierd (Score:3, Funny)
capping it would be the ult
Re:That is wierd (Score:3, Funny)
Re:That is wierd (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:That is wierd (Score:2)
Besides, where are the apps
Re:That is wierd (Score:3)
Re:That is wierd (Score:5, Insightful)
There are quite a few reasons to limit upload:
-jim
Re:That is wierd (Score:3, Insightful)
Basic economics, in other words. Especially if you're a local phone monopoly.
At $30 a month for 5/2, I'll be all over
Passive optical networks are asymmetric (Score:3, Informative)
Google passive optical network if you want to know more.
Online ordering is currently unavailable. (Score:2)
Please try again at a later time or call (888) 662-8275 Monday-Friday 8 a.m.-11 p.m. EST or Saturday 8 a.m.-8 p.m. EST to speak with a Verizon Online representative.
What an Evil tease...
/.'ed (Score:3, Funny)
Host a Webpage (Score:5, Informative)
I wouldn't hold my breath.
Re:Host a Webpage (Score:5, Interesting)
From the terms of service (Score:5, Informative)
Re:From the terms of service (Score:3, Interesting)
But it's download only! (Score:5, Funny)
Sorry Verizon, but if I can't upload those HTTP GET requests, I don't need any of your one-way fibre. Talk about asymmetric!
Excellent work, Slashdot (Score:2, Informative)
Server Error in '/FiosForHome' Application.
Runtime Error
Description: An application error occurred on the server. The current custom error settings for this application prevent the details of the application error from being viewed remotely (for security reasons). It could, however, be viewed by browsers running on the local server machine.
Details: To enable the details of this specific error message to be viewable on remote machines, please create a tag within a "web.config" configuration
don't you mean.. (Score:5, Funny)
don't you mean your mom's basement?
Nice ... .NET to the rescue (Score:2)
Runtime Error
Description: An application error occurred on the server. The current custom error settings for this application prevent the details of the application error from being viewed remotely (for security reasons). It could, however, be viewed by browsers running on the local server machine.
Details: To enable the details of this specific error message to be viewable on remote machines, please create a tag within a "web.config" configuration file locate
hmm... (Score:5, Interesting)
I was complaining because VSL limits that to ~55Mbps.
Being in Japan just put things into a dirrerent perspective, I guess. So here is to consumers of America (of whom I will become one again all too soon) - DEMAND MORE!! it's kind of weird when the post get so excited even though it... erm... relly slow.
America's too big! (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:America's too big! (Score:5, Insightful)
The most densely populated city in Japan is Tokyo. 8 million people in 630 square kilometres (13,000 per k2)
The most densely populated city in the US is New York. 8 million people in 830 square kilometres (10,000 per k2)
The most densely populated city in the world is Seoul. 10 million people in 615 square kilometres (17,000 per k2)
In Tokyo we have 100% ADSL availability offering 40 mbits down
there is also limited (~10%) FTTP availability offering 100 mbits
Why is there not even one company attempting to offer something similar in New York, Korea has near 100% availability of dsl and cable yet they too are limited to US like services.
The real reason we have insane connection bandwidth in Japan is because the telecoms monopoly is restricted from price gouging, they must lease there cables at a flat rate irrespective of the amount of data that flows over them.
When I had an ADSL connection I would pay $20 a month to NTT for the ADSL connection, then my ISP could push as much or as little data over that connection as they wished.
Now I have a Fibre connection, I pay $40 a month for the wire, I actually pay $70 a month to my ISP but I get a static IP range and national wireless coverage too over the AirH network.
The reason Japan has stupid fast internet connections, and the second highest broadband penetration in the world? Competition, who would have thought of it.
Re:Wrong answer! (Score:3, Insightful)
home.
Uh, you do realize that back in the days of Ma Bell you weren't allowed to even plug a modem into a phone jack? Why do you think that people used acoustic couplers?
Sure, you'd have high speed internet access. Oh, you would only be able to use it on a genuine Bell computer - buy your 1.2 GHz model for only $1500!
The problem is that barriers to local phone competition need to be lifted. Sure, you won
Re:America's too big! (Score:3, Informative)
Also, it doesn't help that BT's main rivals (NTL and Telewest) - or should that be only rivals -- have been in bankruptcy protection for the last 3-4 years...
WTF!? (Score:4, Interesting)
In Tokyo (my home nw) that's DSL rates! Fibre STARTS at 100MBps! WTF?
Re:WTF!? (Score:2)
Re:WTF!? (Score:3, Insightful)
skeptical (Score:5, Informative)
6 meg DSL (Score:4, Funny)
I'm close to the CO, but something is wrong with the burried wire, and Verizon wont help me locate the issue. They tested the house, Covad did testing, thought the DSLAM was bad because it was bouncing, tested my PID, but everything looks fine. Just 3-6 times a day, the line drops and reconnects, all freaking burried wire too.
I'd kill for 5/2meg for 40 bux a month, 99 for 6/768 DSL that doesnt work is major suckage. Lucky comcast has 3/256, so im not bandwidth less, I just can't host any of my domains.
Verizon has such bad policies on support on copper, fibre must be a god send to customers needing support... Could even switch to VoIP too.
I'd even shut down my vanity domain Fuck Verizon [fuckverizon.com] if they fixed my DSL! Currently I have it re-directed to verizon eats poop...
Re:6 meg DSL (Score:2)
And the best part? (Score:5, Funny)
Awww yeah!
Maybe they should run their webserver on FIOS (Score:2)
https://www22.verizon.com/FiosForHome/Channels/
It's Mb, not MB (Score:2)
Re:It's Mb, not MB (Score:3, Insightful)
I just wish they were offering it here.
Random errors, assume slashdotting. (Score:2)
That's a widely disparate range of speeds... or (Score:3, Funny)
Since the editors don't edit, I hereby declare 1,794kbps download speed and 14,679 upstream!
You know it's from the phone company... (Score:2)
Translation: we'll actually charge you more, but we're not going to tell you how much.
Two things (Score:2, Insightful)
First of all you can use any service you want listening on any port you want. Data in your
Re:Two things (Score:5, Insightful)
That would work if you ran a server destined to never offer serivces to even a small group of people, but for normal, practical usage, it's... well, useless. Sure, you can append port numbers to your protocol directives, but it'll never be an ubiquitous internet side in the least. You can't accept SMTP traffic unless it's been directly MX'd from a "normal" server, you can't even bounce port 80 requests to the proper port since presumbly, you moved it OFF port 80 to prevent random connections or avoid upstream blocks. Port shuffling is usually considered poor design and the worst example (if used in this fashion) of security/obscurity
Yawn (Score:2)
Why is it that when the rest of the world catches up, its always limited?
Verizon Video Services (Score:3, Interesting)
I just submitted this story to /., I'm assuming it doesn't get listed.
Verizon and Motorola announce deal [lightreading.com]
Basically, they are using Motorola set top boxes to deliver video feeds off of their Fiber. I would expect it soon.
To quote Hellboy ... (Score:2)
Toll-free Slashdotting (Score:2)
He said they weren't selling it yet and he didn't even have pricing info so I helped him out and quoted the web page pricing to him.
He seemed confused by the fact that he had just gotten several calls about this new service. Apparently I'm not the only one who called after their web site repeatedly crashed.
FIOS loop qual for South Texas (Score:2)
Down here, most likely it would be the third selection..
Pedantry (Score:2)
I'd seriously consider buying a
it sucks (Score:2)
So, if i only get one IP address, that means i cannot run my own H.323 or SIP server or anything like that.
It sucks. No thanks.
How are they doing this? (Score:2)
The PON stuff is getting cheaper, for example a small headend unit is now about $4500 and the stuff at each house is less than $750 and with fiber running a dime a meter, the major costs is the trenching and fusion splicer.
Not so fast about the phone line! (Score:2)
What happens when the power goes out, the fiber goes dark, and now you have no telephone? During the hurricanes many people running phone service through broadband were SOL, and cell phone reliability also went into the toilet. Keep in mind some areas were without power for _weeks_. As much as I want to ditch mine, sometimes a land line is still the best way to go.
and I can't get better than 1.5m/96k DSL here (Score:2)
FTTP (Fiber To the Premises)! $39.95 for 5MB/2MB, $49.95 for 15MB/2MB, and $199.95 for 30MB/5MB
...and I live less than 20 minutes out from Boston and I still can't get DSL service other than 1.5mbit/96kbit (yes, you read that right. 96kbit upload, WORSE THAN ISDN!)
If I lived one town over, I could have my choice of DSL providers and about 10 different combos of up/down rates. It's quite sad; Verizon won't allow any of the DSL companies to sell service in our town, and they won't offer anything except
No Servers Allowed (Score:5, Informative)
I wonder how the TOS nazis plan to handle P2P apps like BT?
Re:No Servers Allowed (Score:3, Insightful)
The poor server.... (Score:5, Funny)
Fios customer service phone number (Score:3, Informative)
I'm in Houston, TX, and they say no Fios for the forseeable future here.
Called the 888 Number (Score:5, Informative)
slashdotted? (Score:3, Funny)
This could be bad.... (Score:3, Interesting)
SECURE YOU BOXES!
Re:I don't have a home phone. (Score:5, Informative)
Re:I don't have a home phone. (Score:3, Informative)
they need your phone number to determine if fttp is available in your area. I don't have a land line--only a cell phone... suggestions?"
Use the # of a neighbor or nearby business. There isn't going to be much of a difference if you use a number from a building across the street or nearby location unless you happen to be on the edge of some kind of service area.
Re:You Bastards (Score:2)
Re:New? (Score:2)