Verizon Wireless nearly finishes LTE puzzle

Filling in some of the final pieces of its LTE network launch plans, Verizon Wireless (VZ) today announced the launch date, pricing and the initial device line up for its new network.
The carrier said the network will officially launch on Dec. 5 with coverage in 39 markets and more than 110 million potential customers as well as dozens of airport locations. The initial market launch announcement from this year’s CTIA Enterprise & Application event was for 38 markets, but the carrier added West Lafayette, Ind., to the mix.
Street level coverage maps will be available for the launch markets beginning Dec. 5, though the carrier has said it expects initial LTE coverage to be at least 70% of its current CDMA coverage for the initial launch.
Despite wide-ranging claims that the launch of LTE services would bring a new wave of pricing options for operators, Verizon Wireless is taking a conservative approach with the launch sticking with rate plans that mirror its current CDMA offerings. The carrier will provide customers with 5 gigabytes of data transmission for $50 per month or 10 GB for $80 per month, with overage charges of $10 per GB. Verizon Wireless said it will not throttle speeds for customers going over their allotted bucket of bytes.
There will not be a no-contract option initially for the service, with all rate plans requiring a two-year contract.
Verizon Wireless’ CTO Tony Melone noted during a conference call that the carrier wanted to keep pricing “simple” with the initial launch, thus the pricing and data caps that mimic current 3G offerings. By comparison, Clearwire Corp. offers “unlimited” data throughput on its WiMAX network, though in the fine print it does indicate it can reign in those customers that get out of hand.
Melone added that customers will be alerted when they reach 50%, 75%, 90% and 100% of their allotted bucket of data.
The initial device lineup for the LTE service will include a single USB modem at launch provided by LG Electronics Co. Ltd., with a similar device from Pantech Corp. joining the party in the near future. Both devices will sell for $100 after all rebates and the mandatory two-year contract. The devices will include both CDMA and LTE capabilities with the ability to seamlessly handoff when roaming from the LTE network to the CDMA network, but having to reconnect when going from CDMA to LTE.
The devices and service will initially be limited to Verizon Wireless retail stores and online outlets, with third-party channels expected to be included in the future.
Melone added that the carrier will announce consumer-oriented devices at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show that will begin hitting the market beginning early next year.
Melone also noted that the carrier was looking at adding a voice product to the LTE offering once the carrier had reached a certain level of scale with LTE coverage in the late 2012 or early 2013 time frame. The carrier has said it plans to cover its entire CDMA footprint with LTE coverage by the end of 2013.
As for the current hype around the use of “4G” by a number of carriers to promote their mobile networks, Melone noted that the name of the service was not relevant and that the user experience is what really matters.
“It is what it is,” Melone added.