Verizon to Expand Its FiOS Fiber-Optic Network to 48,000 Additional Homes in Portland, Ore., Metro Area
BEAVERTON, Ore. - Verizon announced plans Tuesday (Jan. 22) to deploy its advanced all-fiber-optic network all the way to customers' homes and businesses in areas east of Gresham along Highway 26 and across the Columbia River in Clark County, Washington.
The company said it will extend the network this year to the communities of Damascus, Happy Valley and Sunnyside, as well as Camas and Washougal in Washington. It also will continue its network expansion in the Washington County and the east Multnomah communities of Gresham, Troutdale, Fairview and Wood Village, as well as McMinnville in Yamhill County.
A total of 48,000 additional homes will be connected to the network, which delivers FiOS Internet service at download speeds of up to 30 mbps (megabits per second) and upload speeds of up to 15 mbps, along with crystal-clear voice and more than 250 channels and 10,000 on-demand titles from FiOS TV. Below are the numbers of households in each community that will be added to the network:
| Community | Households |
| Beaverton | 3,200 |
| Sunnyside/Damascus Area | 13,500 |
| McMinnville | 6,800 |
| Forest Grove | 1,900 |
| Gresham Area | 7,000 |
| Tigard | 3,800 |
| Tualatin | 1,300 |
| Camas/Washougal | 10,000 |
| Other | 500 |
| Total | 48,000 |
The network, known as fiber to the premises, or FTTP, uses hair-thin strands of fiber and optical electronics to directly link to homes and businesses and replaces the traditional copper-wire connections for voice, high-speed Internet and TV.
"FTTP is the state-of-the art network that enables our FiOS Internet, TV and voice services," said David S. Valdez, the company's vice president for the Northwest. "We'll reach more than 270,000 households and small businesses in Oregon by year-end and add 10,000 more in Camas and Washougal.
"Verizon has lived up to its promise of bringing competition and choice to consumers in the metro area with everything from superior-quality FiOS TV to symmetrical FiOS Internet service where customers can get 15 megabits per second download and upload speeds," he added.
Verizon launched its FiOS TV service in Oregon in mid-December, and it is now available to most communities in Washington County, as well as the cities and unincorporated areas near Dundee, Newberg and McMinnville in Yamhill County.
The company is currently negotiating with the Mount Hood Cable Commission to secure a video franchise agreement so it can offer FiOS TV this year to the communities of Gresham, Troutdale, Fairview and Wood Village.
More than 8.5 million homes and businesses in parts of 16 states are now passed by Verizon's all-fiber network, and the company expects the network to pass about 18 million premises by the end of 2010. Verizon had 1.3 million FiOS (FYE'-ose) Internet customers and 717,000 FiOS TV customers at the end of the third quarter of 2007.
FiOS Internet service includes: state-of-the-art, wireless broadband home router; Verizon's Surround entertainment portal optimized for high-speed access featuring news, games, streaming video and more; virtually unlimited 2 GB (gigabytes) of e-mail capacity with up to 9 e-mail accounts; 24 x 7 live technical support; and 30-day money-back guarantee.
FiOS TV service highlights include:
- FiOS TV Premier, the lead offer, with more than 250 all-digital channels for $42.99 per month.
- 27 high-definition channels with extraordinary clarity and theater-quality sound.
- A library of more than 10,000 on-demand titles, 60 percent of which are free.
- Channels grouped by genres such as entertainment, sports, news, shopping, movies and family, making it easy for audiences to find their favorite programming.
- An interactive media guide that helps customers quickly and easily find and enjoy content from TV listings, video-on-demand catalogs and digital video recorders (DVR) as well as personal music and photos from a home network.
- Set-top boxes ranging from a standard-definition box for $4.99 per month to the Home Media DVR, featuring a multi-room DVR that enables up to three simultaneous viewings of recorded programs without requiring customers to set up a complex home network or buy extra equipment. The recorder is bundled with Media Manager, a new feature that lets customers easily access photos and music from their PCs and play them on their televisions. Home Media DVR is $19.99 per month.
- FiOS TV Widgets, a free interactive feature that provides local weather and traffic information while customers are watching their favorite shows.
FiOS TV also features diverse entertainment in a variety of languages. Spanish-speaking viewers can choose La Conexion, a package of nearly 140 popular English and Spanish-language channels for $32.99 per month, or a Spanish-language package for $11.99 per month. Verizon also offers 14 international premium channels in languages such as Chinese, French, Italian, Korean, Russian and Vietnamese.
FiOS Internet and FiOS TV service begin at prices as low as $42.99 each per month, with additional discounts available for bundled service and one- or two-year agreements.
Consumers can visit www.verizonfios.com or www.verizon.com/fiostv, or call
1-888 WOW FIOS, (1-888-969-3467) or visit the following locations to find out if FiOS TV and FiOS Internet service are available at their residence:
Verizon Plus:
Gresham Town Fair
314 N.W. Eastman Parkway
Gresham
503-667-9726
Tanasbourne Village Shopping Center
2345 NW 185th Ave., Suite G-127
Hillsboro
503-645-5618
Broadband Fixture @ Verizon Wireless:
7174 SW Hazelfern Rd.
Tigard
503-639-5078
1031 NW Civic Dr.
Gresham
503-492-9126
18021 NW Evergreen Parkway
Beaverton
503-645-1325
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), headquartered in New York, is a leader in delivering broadband and other wireline and wireless communication innovations to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving 63.7 million customers nationwide. Verizon's Wireline operations include Verizon Business, which delivers innovative and seamless business solutions to customers around the world, and Verizon Telecom, which brings customers the benefits of converged communications, information and entertainment services over the nation's most advanced fiber-optic network. A Dow 30 company, Verizon has a diverse workforce of nearly 238,000 and last year generated consolidated operating revenues of more than $88 billion. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.
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