Verizon Ends Fixed LTE Trials With DirecTV → Probably Not Viable Anyway

Could this have really worked anyway? LTE is limited to metro areas (right now anyway) where there are usually at least options of cable, DSL and sometimes fiber. All of which are faster connections, well except DSL in most cases. Why would someone switch the the LTE alternative that would most likely have very low caps? I could see this maybe working once the LTE build-out has a footprint the size of the current EVDO coverage. But even then most of the areas that would serve already have seemingly better alternatives.

However, if Verizon would someday offer a single data package to cover all my smartphones plus my house at a decent price and without absurd caps I'd be all over it.

What's a non-absurd cap? If it's somewhere between 10GB and 250GB who knows? Verizon will now have ~40 MHz of spectrum to play with on that front, plus fiber to the tower, so competing with fixed-line broadband is very doable, particularly compared to many, if not most, current DSL deployments.

Sure it could have. Verizon already has cell service in these rural areas. And the LTE is on a different frequency. Pop in an LTE antenna and base station with a decent backhaul (which they already have because of 3G) and poof, you have rural LTE.

I bet the contract was this: We'll sell you our spectrum on the condition that you abandon your stuff with our biggest competitor, DirecTV. I think that explains it better. Why else would you partner with a company that provides something you want to offer. Why would I go from Comcast to LTE for Internet? Makes no sense. In the rural areas you could offer service to people that have no option.