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Verizon and Cablevision Price War

According to Red Herring, The chatter around Verizon Communications offering a low-end fiber optic service (FiOS) is picking up. Unconfirmed reports have Verizon launching a low-end FiOS service next year that will be priced below $20 per month, with downstream speeds of 1 megabit per second (Mbps).

To date, Verizon offers three flavors of FiOS. The current low-end service has a downstream speed of 5 Mbps and an upstream speed of 2 Mbps and sells for $34.95, with voice. The mid-tier service offers downstream speeds of 15 Mbps and upstream speeds of 2Mbps for $44.95 with voice.

The high-end service offers 30 Mbps downstream and 5 Mbps upstream for $179.95 with voice. On the Broadband Reports forum, one report states that Verizon plans to charge $14.95 per month for a service that most likely will be 1 Mbp both down and upstream.

But Verizon has been involved in something approaching hand-to-hand combat with Cablevision, a cable TV operator in the New York area, and the sixth-largest cable operator in the United States. Cablevision has moved aggressively to hold on to its customer base and stymie Verizon�s entry into the video market with very aggressively priced services and improved customer service.

Three weeks ago Cablevision announced it would offer 30 Mbps connection speeds for as little as $9.95 to its Triple Play customers, or $14.95 per month as a stand-alone service. Cablevision also said it would launch an unprecedented 50 Mbps service by the middle of next year.

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