Verizon Unwires New York

Verizon Communications has flipped the "on" switch for 150 Wi-Fi access points located around New York City, launching an outdoor wireless network that the company hopes will attract subscribers to its Verizon Online Internet access service.

The access points, dubbed Verizon HotSpots and built into the company's pay-phone kiosks, offer high-speed connections within a radius of up to 300 feet. Verizon Online subscribers can access the network for free, using Wi-Fi-equipped devices such as laptop or handheld computers.

A map of the HotSpots is available online. Verizon will be updating the map as new HotSpots are added. By the end of the year, the company intends to have 1000 active access points throughout the city.

Broadband Bargains

Verizon also lowered prices and raised maximum available speeds Tuesday on its consumer and small-business-targeted DSL subscription packages.

Verizon's DSL service now starts at $30 per month when purchased in conjunction with the company's phone services, down from $35 per month. The price tag for stand-alone DSL service also dropped, to $35, from a previous minimum of $50.

The maximum download speed available through Verizon Online DSL rose to 1.5 megabits per second, up from 768 kbps.

The goal of the changes, particularly the Wi-Fi network rollout, is to make the broadband experience better for Verizon Online subscribers, and to draw new customers to the service, said Michael Lanier, Verizon's broadband wireless Internet marketing director.

Other Markets?

Verizon declined to discuss which other cities it may be considering for similar Wi-Fi networks; but if all goes well in New York, the company plans to enter other markets, Lanier said.

At a launch event in Madison Square Park, Verizon staff offered passers-by a chance to surf on several wirelessly connected demo laptops, and distributed subway maps highlighting HotSpot zones.

New York is already a relatively Wi-Fi-equipped city. For years, volunteer-run nonprofit NYCWireless has advocated for and helped to construct free public wireless access points. Earlier this month, the Downtown Alliance, an advocacy group for lower Manhattan, began establishing free Wi-Fi spots throughout its district.

Verizon's Lanier said his company doesn't view those free efforts as competition, since Verizon's Wi-Fi network is intended as a perk for its broadband customers, rather than as a stand-alone service.