Verizon Wireless Is Booting Rural Data Users Off Its Network Verizon continues to heavier rural users on the company's "unlimited" wireless data plans off of the Verizon network. Users over at Howard Forums have noted for months that the target appears to be largely rural customers on partner carriers of Verizon's LTE in rural America program (LTEiRA), which provides smaller rural carriers spectrum and technology access in exchange for extending Verizon's cellular reach in these markets. To Verizon customers, there's no obvious difference between being on Verizon networks or these rural carrier partners.

Under Verizon's unlimited plans, users will find their connections throttled after 22 GB of usage for the remainder of their billing cycle. But Verizon appears unable to throttle these users on LTEiRA, so they've begun kicking them off the network entirely. “They’re calling those with billing addresses outside of their coverage areas on unlimited and agreeing to pay off their phones if they will port out, otherwise they will discontinue the service,” one poster said. The efforts appear to have ramped up in recent months, with around 2,000 Verizon Wireless users in Maine being told recently that they need to find a new wireless provider if they want to retain their current cell phone number. Companies like Wireless Partners say they were contracted by Verizon to expand service to rural markets, after which Verizon promised many of these users unlimited data connections the company subsequently decided it couldn't afford. “They’re doing this all over the country and we’re the first ones who have been reacting to it,” Maine Public Advocate Barry Hobbins tells the Bangor Daily News. “It appears that Verizon induced these companies to build out in the rural areas around the country and then significantly promoted it by saying that they’re covering the rural areas, when it fact now, after putting those ads out, they’re now not covering the rural areas -- in fact, they’re cutting it back,” he added. Verizon has confirmed the effort, but states this should only be minority of customers, some of which the company claims were consuming as much as one terabyte of data per month. "Earlier this month we notified a small group of customers who are out of contract and primarily use mobile data on other wireless companies’ networks that we won’t be their service provider after July 30, 2017," a Verizon spokesperson said last month. "This only affects a few people who primarily roam on other networks and does not affect customers who primarily use Verizon's own network." The problem is that Verizon Wireless has justified its frozen deployment of fixed-line broadband services like FiOS by insisting it's offering equivalent wireless services uniformly, when that's pretty clearly not the case. And companies like Wireless Partners, which helped Verizon construct 13 new towers in the area, say the company's decision to sever these users' connections poses a safety risk. “In respect to that and to network users and the potentially devastating public safety and economic development consequences, Wireless Partners plans to exhaust every effort to cause Verizon Wireless to rethink this decision and to honor the promise of its LRA program under which the network was constructed,” the company said. There's some notable additional conversation on this over at There's some notable additional conversation on this over at Howard Forums







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Most recommended from 35 comments

adam1991

join:2012-06-16

united state 16 recommendations adam1991 Member Where's T-Mobile in all of this? I'd think they'd be grabbing every one of those customers, publicly giving them service for two years, and gloating all the way about how they're better than Verizon.



Which they are, but still.

Black_Mage

iMage

Premium Member

join:2012-09-12

USA 9 recommendations Black_Mage Premium Member What? "Verizon continues to heavier rural users on"



Huh? BiggA

Premium Member

join:2005-11-23

Central CT ·Cox HSI

ARRIS SB6141

Asus RT-AC68

3 recommendations BiggA Premium Member LTEiRA versus Wireless Partners This makes sense to protect the LTEiRA partners like Bluegrass, Appalachian, and Thumb, who all offer their own service. No one should have an issue with Verizon booting them and sending them to the appropriate partner.



Where it gets squirrelly is with Wireless Partners in Downeast Maine. That is a roamer network that doesn't sell to consumers, and Wireless Partners themselves seems upset about this because they are losing some of the roaming revenue they get from Verizon.



This has nothing to do with fiber, or unlimited, or anything else. This is a wireless roaming and non-compete issue.

Defiance

Computer Elite

Premium Member

join:2002-09-11

Burlington, WI 2 recommendations Defiance Premium Member hmm If a customer is on contract they should discontinue the contract with no ETF since it is the carrier kicking them. In the Article it says the customer had to pay off their contract lol.