Verizon has struggled with installing FiOS in apartment complexes and MDUs (multiple dwelling units) -- where a fifth of their customers live. Given that traditional fiber can't be bent without signal degredation, installs in and around apartment buildings and condos have proven tricky. Verizon, who's finishing negotiations with NYC and is preparing to deploy FiOS in the big apple, is going to be helped greatly by a new development at Corning: bendable fiber.

Dubbed Clearcurve, Corning's solution infuses the cladding that surrounds the fiber's narrow core with nanostructures. Those nanostructures act as light guardrails creating a 25 trillion bits per second cable that can be wound into tight loops without degrading connectivity (see very cool demo video).

Obviously this is a huge boon to FTTH carriers like Verizon, who'll be able to snake fiber in and around a house to their heart's delight. Verizon worked closely with Corning during the development of Clearcurve, and now according to Corning, the baby bell has officially ordered the first batch of product.

"This is the year that Verizon moves into high gear in deploying FiOS TV and FiOS Internet to apartment buildings, condos and similar multiple dwelling units," said Claire Beth Nogay, senior vice president and chief network officer for Verizon Telecom. "Corning’s bendable optical fiber cable is particularly valuable in the tight spaces typical of these sorts of buildings. ClearCurve rugged drop cable is an initial product in what promises to be a family of specialized bendable fiber products we expect to use across our network going forward."