J.D. Power and Associates Ranks Verizon Wireless Highest in Call Quality in Five Regions

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., Feb. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Verizon Wireless ranked highest among wireless providers and scored significantly above the industry average in five regions in the J.D. Power and Associates 2010 Wireless Call Quality Performance Study(SM), Volume 1, issued today.

The J.D. Power and Associates study measures call quality among the major U.S. wireless service providers in six regions based on factors that impact overall carrier performance. Verizon Wireless scored consistently better than the industry average in key categories and ranked higher than other carriers in five regions that cover 43 states and the District of Columbia:

• Northeast Region, which covers Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont.
• Mid-Atlantic Region, which covers Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia.
• Southeast Region, which covers Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.
• Southwest Region, which covers Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas.
• West Region, which covers Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

"At Verizon Wireless we take great pride in our reputation as the leader in network quality," said Tony Melone, senior vice president and CTO of Verizon Wireless.  "We've earned that reputation through consistent network investment coupled with a single-minded focus by our engineers and technicians to stay ahead of customer needs and expectations, including the explosive popularity of messaging services and customers increasing use of smartphones.  We intend to stay true to that commitment to network quality and reliability as we evolve to the next generation of mobile broadband."

More than 24,300 wireless phone subscribers were surveyed by J.D. Power and Associates between July and December 2009 about their experience with dropped calls, static/interference, failed connection on the first try, voice distortion, echoes, no immediate voice mail notification, and no immediate text message notification.

Verizon Wireless' Reliable Network*

Verizon Wireless has the largest and most reliable 3G data network coverage area in the United States.  The company's 3G data network provides customers in more locations than any other wireless carrier the ability to browse the Web quickly with fast page loading times, quickly download and play music, watch streaming video, send e-mails with attachments, download and play 3D games, video conference with contacts, and rapidly share files.

Each year, Verizon Wireless aggressively invests billions of dollars in its network to stay ahead of the growing demand for the company's voice and data services.  In 2009 alone, Verizon Wireless invested $7 billion in its network to increase coverage and capacity and to add new services.  

Stay up to date on Verizon Wireless' latest network news, stories and information at www.youtube.com/verizonwireless, or follow the VZWNetwork on Twitter at www.twitter.com/VZWNetwork.

For more information about Verizon Wireless, visit www.verizonwireless.com.

*The company's “most reliable network” claim is based on network studies performed by real-life test men and test women who conduct more than 3.5 million voice call attempts and more than 19 million data tests annually on Verizon Wireless' and other national wireless carriers' networks while traveling more than 1 million miles in specially equipped, company-owned quality test vehicles.  For more information about Verizon Wireless testing, go to: http://aboutus.vzw.com/bestnetwork/reliability.html.

About Verizon Wireless

Verizon Wireless operates the nation's most reliable and largest wireless voice and 3G data network, serving more than 91 million customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 83,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) and Vodafone (Nasdaq and LSE: VOD). For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.

SOURCE Verizon Wireless