Verizon won't bring FiOS to Boston

Boston wants FiOS, but Verizon won’t deliver. The company told the Boston City Council last week that Verizon had no intention of building out its all-fiber service to the city.

Councilor Matt O’Malley recognizes the disadvantage the city faces without access to broadband: “High speed Internet is no longer a luxury, it is a necessity. This city ... is being held back because of a lack of access to opportunity, and that’s not right.”

“We never said we would go everywhere, and we don’t have any intention of expanding FiOS here or anywhere else,” said Peter Bowman, a Verizon vice president. “We continue to be focused on building out where we have contractual agreements."

But even where Verizon has contractual agreements, it’s failing to meet basic obligations. The company promised New York City that all New Yorkers would have access to FiOS by 2014, but more than a year after the deadline, millions of New Yorkers can’t access the service. At a recent NYC Council meeting, consumers, elected officials, advocates and union members called on Verizon to build out its high-speed FiOS network.

"Verizon promised the City fast broadband, but instead the company has spent seven years dragging its feet and breaking its contract," said Council Member Rory I. Lancman at the New York hearing. "Verizon needs to stop stalling and start installing."

Verizon to Boston: No FiOS for you (Boston Herald, Oct. 15, 2015)

Consumers, elected officials, union members call on Verizon to stop stalling at NYC Council hearing (Speed Matters, Oct. 15, 2015)