Best Clackamas Broadband Choice Just Got Tougher To Get

Now, I know a few folks who like the Internet.  As you can tell from the prior post, Mrs. Clackablog and Yours Truly just had a leetle problem with our broadband (settled last night after our fifth call to our current provider, who CLEARly had not troubleshot the problem with their equipment well).

So it is with dismay that I read Verizon, the provider of FIOS, is cutting back expansion plans. Verizon serves much of Clackamas County, and their FIOS system is not only technically superior, but also, according to everyone I know who uses it, is purely addictive and the best darned broadband ever.

DSL Reports, a reliable source for broadband industry information, provides cutback details:

Verizon's essentially cutting and running on additional deployment plans, leaving a very large chunk of their footprint on last-generation DSL and copper-based voice networks.

(Industry analyst) Burstein tells Broadband Reports that he doesn't see Verizon expanding any further (with the exception of major cities where they've signed franchise agreements) unless they get money from Uncle Sam (aka, taxpayers). "They want to get on the gravy train, although I think the new, less competitive leadership is the primary explanation," says Burstein when asked why Verizon's shifting tactics. (CEO) Seidenberg, the driving force behind the first wave of FiOS, is on his way out -- and his replacements aren't quite as bullish on angering investors for the sake of this whole "future" thing.

The feds gave major concessions to telephone companies, Verizon included, based on the promises made to the Congress for the Telecommunications Act of 1996, to encourage broadband growth, and although broadband makes money for the phone companies in unexpected ways (see next-to-last paragraph), they haven't delivered on their promises to open up broadband. 


That's why Google is experimenting with high-speed Internet deployment, which Portland will compete for, for Google makes money if the economy booms.


And, if Verizon cuts back on FIOS rollout, that's bad news for Clackamas County.