Verizon Plans to Discontinue Copper in Several Markets

Verizon has asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for permission to retire copper in areas of New England, New York and Pennsylvania as it continues moving customers to fiber-based technology.

The carrier said it plans to retire copper facilities and replace them with fiber facilities to provide services over its fiber-to-the-home network infrastructure. It plans to do this on or after Nov. 30.

The changes will take place in legacy ILEC markets such as Riverside, Rhode Island; several areas in Massachusetts; numerous locations in New York City; and several parts of Pennsylvania, such as Carnagie and Middletown.

The “more reliable, newer fiber-optic technology” will deliver increased reliability, improved resistance to weather and faster repair times, according to Verizon. In addition, fiber optics offers better voice quality and higher bandwidth potential, it said.

After the retirement, Verizon will no longer offer services via copper facilities and cease maintaining them.

The retirement will not result in changes to rates, terms and conditions in cases where the affected service is converted to a like-for-like service that is available on fiber facilities, according to Verizon. In cases where interconnecting entities choose to replace the affected service with an alternative service that Verizon offers on fiber facilities, the rates, terms and conditions will be as set forth in the tariff or agreement under which Verizon offers the replacement service,

If no objections are filed, a notice of copper retirement usually will be deemed final on the 90th day after the release of the Commission’s public notice of the filing; however, if a retirement doesn’t involve any customers, those will be deemed final on the 15th day after the release of the public notice.