Verizon Planning to Use Wi-Fi to Supplement 3G, 4G
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Comments 48
May 20, 2011, 11:54 AM by Eric M. Zeman
Speaking at the TIA conference this week, Verizon Communications CTO Tony Melone said that the company hopes to offload some data traffic from its cellular data networks to W-Fi. Melone said that Verizon is hoping to get users to transition from cellular data services to Wi-Fi data when in their homes, or large public places such as sports arenas. "We won’t use it ubiquitously to cover up flaws and capacity limitations," Melone said. "In my mind it is much more effective to invest in your 3G and 4G environments than rely on Wi-Fi." The strategy is one similar to that taken by AT&T, which has lit up enormous public spaces — such as New York City's Times Square area — with Wi-Fi in the hopes of reducing cellular network congestion. Earlier this year, the Wi-Fi Alliance announced a new program that will eventually lead to fewer hotspot log-in headaches for users of Wi-Fi equipped devices. The hotspot program will facilitate the seamless handoff of cellular traffic from smartphones, tablets, and other portable devices to Wi-Fi networks. It will let Wi-Fi users more easily find networks and log into those networks securely with WPA2 authentication. Verizon didn't specifically say it would rely on this program for its Wi-Fi offloading plans.
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Eating Crow and Choking!!!
VZW is already starting to experience the woes AT&T had experienced. Funny thing is is that VZW has 2/3rds less IPhones activated since inception than AT&T. Kinda funny. And on top have that I believe that there have been two reported mass outages of there "4G" network already..... Just Makes Me Smile to see the Evil Empire Struggle and then try to be smug about it.
iPhone
With all those shiny new iPhones on their network, is Verizon already having some of the same network woes as AT&T did a few years ago?
🙄
I don't think it has anything to do with network problems. I think its the fact that other carriers have gone to tiered data for the simple fact they cant afford the extensive use customers impose on a network. So why not play follow the le...
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I don't know why so many people think the Iphone is so, so data intensive, it's web browser renders the same real internet that Androids browser renders.
funny every time I go into my local store the entire right side is devoted to Android and that's where 99% of the traffic remains...sure not a scientific poll but I don't think verizon customers are that crazy for apple.
In the far and distant future
So who sees whole cities being wi-fi in the future? Just curious. One of those things where I just want to see where you all think the technological progression will end up.
I challenge you to find a public, indoor location within 3 miles of a major city center in the United States from which a Wi-Fi hotspot is not visible. It's not an easy thing to do.
Wi-Fi is almost everywhere right now. Free Wi-Fi availabl...
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That's the only one I can think of that alegedly offers city-wide wi-fi.
Actually, the most interesting aspect is that Verizon is hedging their bets on its near-term-future network performance.
After years of beating its own chest and badmouthing every other carrier's network (especially recalling Verizon's attack ads o...
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Translation:
Our network isn't good enough to provide unlimited data access for EVERYONE so we'll rely on Wi-Fi instead.
Supposedly the 700mhz band has room for a whole lot more users simultaneously. For those who say LTE isn't everywhere, Verizon is deploying it rapidly.
I just don't understand all this talk about wifi and tiered data when 700mhz is suppose to have...
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More like "Please use WiFi mainly but keep paying us the monthly data fee!"
Following AT&T's Footsteps
First trying to get people off network and go wifi. Next tiered data, whats next, dropped calls? I'm disappointed.
what if this is just a precaution...
i will have to give it to Verizon, i signed up for the iphone and i cant touch their network it has been perfect, no complaints and i know i am lucky. Verizon's 3g network is even faster then my charter wireless so i usaully always keep my wifi off cause i have unlimited (grin). Verizon is confident in their network and i respect that...they are smart by planning ahead to prevent anything in the future. Maybe they are perfectly fine but use the wifi option just as an extra precaution, i think that is smart!
(it would be really funny if verizon's network experienced the same troubles att went through after all that crap talkin, talk about pie in your eye!)
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