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Rick5
Premium Member
join:2001-02-06

Rick5

Premium Member

Very nice...

Broadband the way it's intended.

My only critique would be why such a price difference between the markets?
89/mo. to 139.00 seems a bit unfair to those outside the 89/mo. markets.

The 65/mo. 20/20 tier is a nice deal however and they're definitely firing some warning shots over the cable co's bow.

If the cable co's needed any wake up call to spur on their docsis 3.0 rollouts..this is it. While still only available in a part of their territory..Verizon really has the right idea here with fios and the competition is going to be fierce.

And, to Verizon and their Execs..I'd like to extend a warm welcome for you to cross those NY and Mass. lines and come rolling right on into the great state of Ct.

This state really needs a telco with vision.

mod_wastrel
anonome
join:2008-03-28

mod_wastrel

Member

said by Rick5:

My only critique would be why such a price difference between the markets? 89/mo. to 139.00...
My best guess is that they want to compete on price with Comcast's 50mbps service (still only in testing) at $150, but maybe they want to compare the uptake between $140 and $90 to see how big the drop-off is.

What they're still missing, though, is an economy tier for $15 for people who just want to get off dial-up and don't really care about ludicrous speed; they'd lose very few "broadband" customers to such a tier, and those that did get it would likely upgrade to something faster after a short while--it would be another marketing tool (as in, "Just checking email and paying bills online? We care about you, too!").

NOCMan
MadMacHatter
Premium Member
join:2004-09-30
Colorado Springs, CO

NOCMan to Rick5

Premium Member

to Rick5
Verizon price jacks customers in markets cable is not trying to raise speeds in. DFW would be one of those markets.

Jodokast96
Stupid people piss me off.
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
NJ

Jodokast96 to mod_wastrel

Premium Member

to mod_wastrel
said by mod_wastrel:

What they're still missing, though, is an economy tier for $15 for people who just want to get off dial-up and don't really care about ludicrous speed; they'd lose very few "broadband" customers to such a tier, and those that did get it would likely upgrade to something faster after a short while--it would be another marketing tool (as in, "Just checking email and paying bills online? We care about you, too!").
True, but how long was it before you saw anything like that with DSL? They only rolled out a $15 tier about 2 years ago. Besides, there aren't any areas that FIOS is being deployed that don't already have a lower priced DSL option anyway, so the point is moot. If they ever start deploying it in areas where that isn't the case, I'm sure you will see a low priced tier, though I'll guess $20-$30 will be more likely.

mod_wastrel
anonome
join:2008-03-28

mod_wastrel

Member

My sister lives in such an area: they offered the $14.95 DSL but she couldn't get it; the CO supported DSL but they were all "sold out"; she tried for more than a year to get DSL, from the time they started marketing it (but since FiOS was planned for the area, they wouldn't sell it); now she can get FiOS, if she wants to, but they don't have anything cheap enough for her to afford, plus she doesn't use the Internet for much more than email and bill paying. The point is definitely not moot for her. Verizon would not lose much by offering a slow, cheap FiOS connection, 'cause there are a bunch of existing Verizon phone customers who are not going to spend more than $20 for Internet service as opposed to sticking with their $10 dial-up; a lot more people don't need/want super-fast speed than those who do--it's just not worth it to them (and you won't see most of them here at BBR). Verizon FiOS has nothing yet to attract these customers away from dial-up.

Jodokast96
Stupid people piss me off.
Premium Member
join:2005-11-23
NJ

Jodokast96

Premium Member

And is mostly a rare occurance. Like I said, in time, you will see a low-priced tier. But for now, FIOS's big push is the speeds, and a low-speed low-priced tier would conflict with that. Sadly, they are in business to make money, not make everyone happy. As to your sister, has she looked into cable? I don't know about other providers, but Comcast does offer an un-promoted, un-advertised, and mostly unmentioned Lite plan of 768, though I think the price is about $30/month.

mod_wastrel
anonome
join:2008-03-28

mod_wastrel

Member

It's not that rare from what I've heard (the trying to get it but can't part); the "I've got dial-up and don't want to spend $30 or more on Internet access" customer isn't rare at all. She's looked at Comcast: the economy "double-play" ($50)--still more than she wants to spend. In time, maybe; but she's been stuck like this for close to 2 years. As it is, Verizon is not selling subscriptions to people who just aren't interested in what they do offer, and there are a lot more of them than there are of those who are interested in 20/20 or even 10/2. Internet access just isn't that important to a LARGE segment of the population--$20 or less is all they care about. Too many people who spend their time living and breathing broadband just don't get that; I work in IT, and I run into it all the time. But then I've always been willing to spend whatever it costs to get broadband--it saved me time (and, time is money).

floridaguy
@cox.net

floridaguy

Anon

I respect what you are trying to convey..... but unless you have some statistics to back it up I'd have to say Verizon has properly invested a tad more time and money into their market analysis.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned) to Rick5

Member

to Rick5
said by Rick5:

Broadband the way it's intended.

My only critique would be why such a price difference between the markets?
89/mo. to 139.00 seems a bit unfair to those outside the 89/mo. markets.
the poor saps in the boonies that can only get satelite internet have to pay $190 for 3Mbps/300kbps and have a 500 MB daily cap.

mod_wastrel
anonome
join:2008-03-28

mod_wastrel to floridaguy

Member

to floridaguy
I think Verizon's market analysis told them they'd have a few takers for their $15 DSL. Instead, they got a flood of new subscribers--too many for them to even handle adequately. I think their only analysis for FiOS subscriptions is a cost/benefit analysis: they figure right now that the only acceptable return on investment for each subscriber is at least $40. The thing is, they also say they're going to drop support for copper, leaving only FiOS connections even if all you have is phone service (though they don't really say when they'll reach this stage). At this point, $15 vs. $0 might sound like a good return on investment--something is better than nothing. What they're betting is that the triple-play (or at least the double-play) will bring in everyone eventually. I think it's a mistake--a financial mistake--to ignore a large portion of your potential subscriber base in the hopes of forcing a larger return. Nobody who really wants broadband is going to go for a 768/128 connection; nobody who doesn't really care about the speed of their Internet connection versus the money in their pocket is going to go for $40 Internet, or even $30--most people's lives do not revolve around Internet access; and a lot of people are satisfied with OTA TV and a trip to the video store, or Netflix. Having no economy tier is losing Verizon potential subscribers and potential revenue. The first rule of marketing is still "make 'em a customer first, then sell 'em more stuff".