Verizon Snips Strings on FiOS Packages with New Month-to-Month Plans

By Nick Mokey June 21, 2010

A high-speed Internet and television package can cost just as much as a car payment – so it should come as little surprise that some potential buyers want to go for a test drive before getting wrapped up in a lengthy contract. Playing to that notion, Verizon has begun tossing homeowners the keys to its FiOS high-speed fiberoptic network, with month-long, no-obligation test drives, as well as new rates on month-to-month service plans.

It’s a sales tactic familiar from late-night infomercials and mattress dealers, but Verizon faces higher stakes than a warehouse full of returned vacuums or box springs: According to Reuters, each FiOS install costs the company $1,350. That’s quite a gamble for a service the consumer can merely walk away from at the end of a month.

At the moment, Verizon only offers its “FiOS Worry-Free Guarantee” for consumers opting for a two-year contract. While the guarantee allows customers to slip out of the contract within that first 30-day window with no penalty, if they decide to stick with Verizon, they’re locked in for a full two years.

Those wary of long-term commitments can also pay month to month with the same rates as contract customers, and no early termination fee, but they’ll only be able to lock in their price for one year. Previously, month-to-month customers paid $20 more than those with contracts.

Verizon’s base FiOS bundle, which includes TV, Internet and phone service, now costs $100 on a month-to-month basis.

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