DirecTV hints at LTE testing with Verizon
updated 10:25 am EST, Wed March 2, 2011
May partner to offer fixed-location 4G service
At an industry conference in San Francisco, DirecTV chairman and CEO Mike White hinted that the company was interested in partnering with other telecoms as LTE service becomes more widespread. He may have been referring to an ongoing test with Verizon of fixed location LTE service in Edinboro, Pennsylvania. Expanding that collaboration would enable Verizon to offer broadband service in rural areas without needing to hardwire new subscribers. DirecTV would bring its installation experience with roof-mounted hardware and would be able to offer customers high-speed internet service and additional support for on-demand programming .
Fixed location 4G has a speed advantage over mobile because more power is available. Verizon has said that mobile users can expect typical speeds in the range of 12 Mbps, while results from the test in Edinboro show download speeds more than twice that.
DirecTV has tried to provide broadband internet service on its own twice before. The company's DSL and satellite-based services both failed to attract enough consumers to remain viable.
