Verizon extends 150 Mbps FiOS speed tier to SMBs

As promised, Verizon stuck to its word and is extending its 150/35 Mbps FiOS speed tier initially targeted at consumers to the SMB market.

SMB customers in parts of California, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas and Virginia can take advantage of the service. In addition to SMBs, Verizon is extending the service to some medium-sized businesses that reside in these markets.  

SMBs that are FiOS-eligible will be able to purchase the service in either a standalone fashion or as part of a bundle. For $229.99 per month, SMBs can purchase the 150/35 Mbps tier as a standalone service. Those businesses that agree to a two-year contract will only pay $204.99 per month, while businesses that purchase the service online will pay about $199.99 per month.

When bundled with a voice line, users can expect to pay about $183.99 per month with no term contract.

From a competitive standpoint, Verizon's drive with the new tiers is an effort to thwart cable's ongoing drive into the SMB market via their existing HFC networks.

On the user level, Verizon's new speed tiers, while obviously only available in specific areas and not obviously applicable to every SMB, could resonate well with SMBs that have higher bandwidth needs. An ideal user could be a remote medical clinic that needs to upload and transfer large CAT scan files to a partner hospital to conduct a patient diagnosis.  

For more:
- see the release

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