Verizon Invested More Than $500 Million in Massachusetts' Wireline Communications, IT Networks in 2011

BOSTON, Feb. 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Annually one of the largest investors in the Massachusetts economy and infrastructure, Verizon continued to bring communications and computing innovation to the Bay State's consumers and businesses in 2011.  Verizon invested more than $500 million in its Massachusetts wireline communications networks and IT infrastructure last year. 

"A strong and vibrant Verizon is crucial to the economic well-being of Massachusetts and its residents," said Manuel J. Sampedro, region president of consumer and mass business markets for Verizon.  "Verizon's advanced networks enable commerce to thrive, businesses to open new markets, students to learn and parents to stay in touch with their children.

"No other company is as interwoven with daily life in Massachusetts.  And no other company invests in Massachusetts like Verizon, providing an engine for economic growth through our aggressive wireline and wireless network and IT deployment," said Sampedro.  "Our significant infrastructure investment is removing traditional technological boundaries, empowering people and businesses to connect however, whenever and wherever they want.  This borderless lifestyle brings great benefits to our customers, employees, suppliers and communities."

Verizon Wireline

Verizon's major wireline infrastructure programs last year included:

• Continued deployment of the company's award-winning, 100 percent fiber-optic FiOS TV and FiOS Internet services.  In 2011, Verizon extended FiOS service to more consumers and businesses in Massachusetts, with the services available to hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses at year's end.
• Enhancements that further differentiate FiOS services from the competition.  The next-generation FiOS TV is built upon a long series of innovations, including a robust Interactive Media Guide that provides an in-depth, interactive TV experience; Flex View and FiOS TV Online, which extend FiOS TV beyond the home to the Internet and a range of mobile devices; free interactive applications including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Yelp, HSN Shop By Remote, TMZ and others; Media Manager, which allows customers to access on their TVs personal photos, music and videos from their computers; and In-Home Agent, which frees customers to use simple online tools to diagnose and resolve a range of service issues.  In 2011, Verizon:
  • Launched Home Monitoring & Control, which provides customers with remote access, control and monitoring of doors, thermostat controls, appliances and home-energy use.
  • Rolled out MY FiOS, an easy-to-use mobile application that gives customers access to access to a variety of other applications including Home Monitoring & Control, as well as movies, TV shows and personal content; remote DVR access and control; and billing, account management and customer service tools.
  • Enabled customers who are Xbox LIVE Gold members and who subscribe to both FiOS TV and Internet service to view select live channels through their Xbox consoles through a collaboration with Microsoft. 
  • Upgraded its Interactive Media Guide, with applications for advanced/intuitive search, social networking, Internet video, personal media streaming, high-definition music, remote DVR controls, account management and billing functions, multi-screen/mobile viewing and much more.
• Accelerated deployment of fiber-optic links to wireless carriers' cell sites throughout Massachusetts as these carriers expand their infrastructure to meet ever-growing demand for wireless broadband and advanced 4G services.  In 2011, Verizon deployed fiber optics to connect 815 of these sites in the state. 

Verizon LTE Innovation Center

In addition, Verizon opened its Verizon LTE Innovation Center in Waltham in 2011. The Center is designed to enable and showcase products, services and solutions that take advantage of the power, speed and reach of Verizon's 4G LTE wireless network. The Center also encompasses laboratory space where engineers and developers from across the 4G LTE ecosystem can create and build a new generation of connected products – the kind of solutions that will help drive the growth of 4G LTE.  More than 300 technology experts work at the Verizon LTE Innovation Center.  

Verizon Enterprise Solutions

Verizon Enterprise Solutions oversees all of Verizon's solutions for business and government customers, including its portfolio of enterprise mobility, cloud and IT, strategic networking and advanced communications offerings; specialized solutions for key industries such as health care, travel and transportation, retail, utilities and financial services; IT consulting services; and the company's full range of global wholesale offerings.

In 2011, the unit launched the Verizon Fraud Management for Healthcare, an advanced-software platform tailored to the health care industry that uses predictive modeling technology to examine health care payment requests and route potentially fraudulent claims to case managers for investigation.  In addition, Verizon Enterprise Solutions continued to implement its "everything-as-a-service" strategy with the acquisition of Terremark, a leading provider of cloud computing solutions.  Security offerings and a host of industry-specific innovations were also launched.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ), headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to consumer, business, government and wholesale customers.  Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, with nearly 109 million total connections nationwide.  Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America's most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers integrated business solutions to customers in more than 150 countries, including all of the Fortune 500.  A Dow 30 company with $111 billion in 2011 revenues, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of nearly 194,000.  For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

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SOURCE Verizon