Verizon boosts broadband speed

Communication company Verizon has announced that it is now offering symmetrical FiOS internet services that provide broadband at speeds that "blow cable away".

The service will be available in all 16 states that currently offer FiOS and will offer users connection speeds of up to 15 megabits per second. Susan Retta, vice president, broadband solutions for Verizon, said: "Millions of households no longer have to settle for cable upload speeds that can't deliver the most interactive online experiences.

"With FiOS you can choose ultra-fast uploading that makes sending information as quick and easy as receiving it." Now the company offers the fastest broadband to the most consumers in America, Ms Retta went on to say. FiOS uses fiber optics to deliver the internet and so far is the only such service in the US. According to the company, fios is an ancient Irish word for knowledge.

Verizon reaches landmark in New Jersey

Verizon has installed its fibre-optic broadband service FiOS in more than one million homes in New Jersey, the company has announced.

And in 2008, Verizon has forecast that it will install the service in an additional 400,000 homes in the state. The announcement came as Verizon opened its brand new fiber solutions customer service center in Freehold. By the end of next year Verizon expects approximately 400 people to be working at the center.

Verizon chairman and chief executive Ivan Seidenberg said: "New Jersey is now among the most-fibered states in the nation." The expanded FiOS service will give New Jersey an "economic boost", added Mr Seidenberg.

Verizon's FiOS service is the first fiber optics network to be rolled out on large scale in the US, the company claims. Fiber-optic communications were first developed in the 1970s and work by transmitting information using light traveling along optical fiber.

Verizon Enhances Email Offering

Communications company Verizon has announced that it is offering its customers much larger amounts of email storage.

Subscribers to the company's FiOS product will now benefit from "an unlimited retention period" and the ability to access their email accounts from any computer. As well as an email account with four gigabytes of storage capacity, customers will also have the option of accessing their accounts via a wireless phone. Peter Castleton, director of Verizon consumer broadband services, said: "Personal email, including digital photo, music and video files, is a critical part of everyday life and we're making it easier for our customers to conveniently access and manage their mail."

Spam filtering and advanced virus protection will continue to be available to customers using the new service, Verizon claims. The company has now made its FiOS service available in 16 states and is continuing to expand it constantly. Verizon states that FiOS is an ancient Irish word for knowledge.

Verizon Business Rolls Out VoIP Enhancements

Verizon's Integrated Communications Package upgrades its VoIP offering with access to e-mail, calendar synchronization, and fully managed voice communication

Verizon Communications' Business unit will launch a VoIP service for customers of its Hosted IP Centrex package that will give users access to new features like text messaging and calendar synchronization.

Verizon Business' Integrated Communications Package is targeted at businesses and government agencies whose employees want more collaboration and mobility functionality with their VoIP phones, Verizon said. The package is designed to reduce the time and effort needed to connect employees, the company said.

The package allows users to access voice e-mail, control incoming and outgoing calls, manage their online presence, send text messages, and synchronize contacts and calendars, Verizon said.

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Verizon Introduces FiOS Media Guide

Verizon has announced that it is to offer an interactive media guide for its FiOS customers.

The guide will let users of the service swiftly and efficiently find the content that they wish to peruse. FiOS is Verizon's fiber to the home telecommunications and broadband service. Verizon is the first carrier in the US to offer such a service.

Shawn Strickland, Verizon vice president of video solutions, said: "We've capitalized on our investment in an ultra-fast, highly responsive fiber-optic network to deliver a customer experience that marries the best interactivity of the web with the highest-quality programming experience in the marketplace." The guide merges the television, Internet and other media and makes it simpler for users to customize and enjoy media, added Mr. Strickland.

FiOS customers will not be charged for the new guide, which can be obtained through a network download. The word fios is an ancient Irish term for knowledge, claims Verizon.

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