PCMag.com Declares Verizon FiOS Internet ’Fastest’

Study Says Company’s Broadband Service, Delivered via All-Fiber FiOS Network, Thumps Cable on Speed, Customer Satisfaction

NEW YORK - PCMag.com and its readers have proclaimed Verizon FiOS the fastest and most satisfying Internet service in the country.

In a study involving a poll of tens of thousands of PCMag.com readers across the U.S. over a period of several months, the independent online technology guide and magazine reported that Verizon’s FiOS service outdistanced all cable providers in speed and customer satisfaction.

The magazine enlisted its broadband readers to conduct more than 200,000 individual real-world tests, between May 23 and Oct. 15, of surfing speeds for the readers’ Internet connections, utilizing a customized Internet speed measurement application called SurfSpeed. The magazine also asked the readers to assess their level of satisfaction with their ISP.

"What did we find" the magazine asked in reporting poll results. "Well, if you’re able to access a fiber connection, get it: Verizon’s FiOS connection easily surpassed even the fastest cable. ... And it’s cheap to boot"

The magazine concluded that Verizon FiOS Internet was "152 percent faster" than cable Internet surfing speeds, while its customer satisfaction poll found that 25 percent more FiOS customers were satisfied with their Internet service when compared with responses from cable customers.

"PCMag.com readers are echoing what our FiOS customers have been telling us for years -- that our all-fiber network is providing them with the best Internet experience in the nation" said John Wimsatt, senior vice president of marketing for Verizon.

PCMag.com, which is produced by the same company that publishes PC Magazine, also reported that Verizon FiOS Internet offered service prices comparable to the much slower cable providers.

"This poll leaves little doubt that FiOS beats cable in value based on the all-important factors of speed, price and overall customer satisfaction" Wimsatt added. "FiOS is best. End of story"

Earlier this year, Verizon FiOS was rated the best in PC Magazine’s readers survey of "The Best (and Worst)" ISPs in America. The survey, conducted between April 7 and May 14, asked PC Magazine readers to evaluate their Internet provider on 11 categories ranging from speed and reliability to initial setup and overall rating.

Verizon FiOS Internet also was named a winner in PC World Magazine’s The 100 Best Products of 2008, the second year in a row the broadband service made the publication’s best products list.

Only Verizon delivers ultra-high-speed broadband straight to customers’ homes over the nation’s most advanced fiber-optic network. The network already reaches more than 10 million homes and businesses, and it will reach more than 18 million by 2010.

Verizon offers FiOS Internet download speeds ranging from 10 Mbps (megabits per second) to 50 Mbps to markets in California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia and Washington. Verizon also offers the unmatched symmetrical FiOS Internet service with the fastest upload speed (20 Mbps) offered anywhere, coupled with an equally fast 20 Mbps downstream speed.*

"Verizon is expanding the reach of its FiOS network to more neighborhoods every day, bringing the promise of greater Internet speed and reliability to more and more American consumers and businesses" Wimsatt said. "When coupled with FiOS TV’s stunning picture-and-sound quality, more and more high-definition channels and burgeoning video-on-demand choices, FiOS is setting the standard for entertainment and information access in America"

The PCMag Digital Network (www.PCMag.com) is one of the world’s best-known publishers of leading technology-based digital content products. Its flagship, PCMag.com, delivers comprehensive labs-based product reviews and the PCMag Editors’ Choice Awards, the most trusted buying recommendations for technology products and services.

* NOTE: actual (throughput) speeds will vary based on factors including computer configuration and network/Internet congestion.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ), headquartered in New York, is a leader in delivering broadband and other wireline and wireless communication innovations to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America’s most reliable wireless network, serving nearly 71 million customers nationwide. Verizon’s Wireline operations include Verizon Business, which delivers innovative and seamless business solutions to customers around the world, and Verizon Telecom, which brings customers the benefits of converged communications, information and entertainment services over the nation’s most advanced fiber-optic network. A Dow 30 company, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of more than 228,000 and last year generated consolidated operating revenues of $93.5 billion. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.