Unions are warning state regulators not to trust broadband promis...
Unions are warning state regulators not to trust broadband promises from Verizon and FairPoint, which submitted joint applications to Me., N.H. and Vt. for approval of Verizon’s $2.7 billion spinoff of its wireline operations in those states to FairPoint.…
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FairPoint said it was hiring at least 600 employees and expanding broadband availability to unserved areas. Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) doubted the promises, with the IBEW saying Verizon seems to be playing a “shell game” to pump up its bottom line and avoid having to spend money on rural broadband. The IBEW said FairPoint has done little with fiber-based broadband and video in existing service area. It said the deal would leave northern New England served “by a much smaller company with fewer resources to expand Internet access… billions of dollars in debt and a very small margin for innovation.”