Verizon Offers Fios Gigabit Connection to 8 Million Homes

Verizon said it launched "the nation's largest deployment of gigabit" internet service -- Fios Gigabit Connection -- providing data speeds as fast as 940/880 Mbps (down/up). The service is priced at $69.99 per month on a standalone basis and starts at $79.99 per month for a triple-play bundle when ordered online, said a Verizon release Monday. "No cable provider comes close to offering the speeds and power of Fios Gigabit connection on this kind of scale. And we've priced it so that millions can enjoy it," said Ken Dixon, president of Verizon's consumer wireline business. Verizon said it fine-tuned the Fios Instant Internet service it launched in January, which gave customers actual speeds well above advertised 750/750 Mbps; the result is Fios Gigabit Connection, which is available to more than 8 million homes in parts of the New York; New Jersey; Philadelphia; Richmond and Hampton Roads, Virginia; Boston; Providence and Washington, D.C., areas. "[T]hat's a more than one million home increase from the Instant Internet footprint with the Washington, D.C. and Providence markets getting access to Verizon's top Internet speeds for the first time," said the release.