5G Is Here–Starting Oct 1, Verizon Will Offer 5G Service (FWA)

“5G is here,” said Hans Vestberg, Verizon CEO.

Continuing its legacy of consumer firsts, Verizon is launching Verizon 5G Home, the world’s first commercial 5G broadband internet service, on October 1. And beginning Thursday, September 13, at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Time, U.S. consumers can visit FirstOn5G.com to learn more about the service and sign up to be a “First On 5G” Member.

Verizon 5G Home will initially be available in parts of Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles and Sacramento. It is built on Verizon’s ultra-wideband 5G network. Verizon is the first company to bring 5G broadband internet service to consumers, and the company says it expects to be the first to offer 5G mobile service.

Verizon has spearheaded the 5G ecosystem for three years, with its 5G Technology Forum, 5G Labs, work with international standards bodies and collaboration with network equipment and device makers. Further advancing 5G, Verizon is not waiting for the most recent technical standards to deliver 5G Home, pushing ahead with its own proprietary 5G standard in this initial commercial launch.

“To be first, we encouraged others in the ecosystem to move more quickly at every step,” said Vestberg. “We appreciate the partnership of network equipment makers, device manufacturers, software developers and chip makers in reaching this critical milestone. The entire wireless industry gets to celebrate.”

$40 per Month, First Three Months Free, for 300 Mbps Typical

By being an early Member, consumers in Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles and Sacramento will get Verizon 5G Home free for three months, part of a special introductory offer available to “First On 5G” Members. After the introductory period, current Verizon Wireless customers with a qualifying smartphone plan will pay $50 per month for the service, while non-Verizon Wireless customers will pay $70 per month. The monthly charge includes all taxes and fees and does not require an annual contract. There are no additional hardware costs. Verizon 5G Home customers should expect typical network speeds around 300 Mbps and, depending on location, peak speeds of nearly 1 Gbps, with no data caps. Verizon 5G Home is ideal for consumers looking to “cut the cord” or upgrade from their current cable service.

5G Home customers will also get YouTube TV free the first three months ($40 per month thereafter) and a free Apple TV 4K or Google Chromecast Ultra device at installation. YouTube TV offers more than 60 networks including ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, popular cable and local sports networks and a cloud DVR, with no storage space limits. Chromecast Ultra enables streaming from thousands of apps or browsing more than 200,000 TV shows and movies, 30 million songs, radio, sports, games and more. Apple TV 4K delivers a stunning cinematic experience at home with support for both 4K and High Dynamic Range (HDR), offering customers an unmatched selection of 4K HDR movies and TV shows from iTunes, Netflix and Prime Video. Siri and the Apple TV app make it simple to find and play the desired programs.

Other “First On 5G” membership exclusives include:

Free white glove installation and equipment, with professional installation and set-up of all Wi-Fi devices, as well as a free router and router upgrades as they become available in 2019.
5G mobile devices, with the ability to be first to purchase new 5G mobile devices as soon as they hit the market.
5G Dedicated service, with 5G expert representatives providing world-class support.

Everyone can sign-up — anywhere in the U.S. — to become a “First On 5G” member, to get exclusive access to Verizon 5G news and information.

Verizon will rapidly expand its coverage area once the company can install the new standards-compliant equipment from its vendors. But starting this week, even consumers who live outside the initial launch cities can sign up at FirstOn5G.com to become “First On 5G” Members and receive updates on when 5G is coming to other areas. Verizon will update members of 5G-related news and offers, including the launch of Verizon’s 5G mobility service.

“’First On 5G’ members get early access to Verizon 5G Home and are first in line for new services, including 5G mobility,” said Tami Erwin, Verizon’s wireless operations leader. “You want an opportunity to cut the cord with your cable company? Now you can cut the cord and go cable free, while getting fast, reliable home internet service over the hottest new technology.”

5G Home Runs on the 5G Ultra-Wideband Network

Verizon 5G Home is unique because it is built on Verizon’s 5G ultra-wideband network. 5G is only as good as the network it is built on and Verizon’s 5G ultra-wideband network is the only 5G network that combines:

End-to-end deep fiber resources throughout the network.
A large deployment of small cells.
Critical, and best-in-class spectrum holdings, particularly in the millimeter wave bands, the only spectrum with the bandwidth to realize the full 5G potential for capacity, throughput and latency.

“To deliver the full potential of 5G, a wireless network provider must have three fundamental assets: deep fiber resources, a large deployment of small cells and critical spectrum holdings. That’s Ultra-wideband,” said Kyle Malady, Verizon’s CTO. “We will deliver a revolutionary 5G experience that will change how people live, work and play.”

Verizon Leadership in 5G

For three years, Verizon has led the way developing and deploying 5G, accelerating 5G innovation and, now, its introduction. In 2015, the company created the 5G Technology Forum, bringing together key partners like Ericsson, Qualcomm, Intel and Samsung — to move the entire 5G ecosystem forward. 5G Technology Forum’s technical work resulted in the release of the 3GPP 5G New Radio (NR) standard in December 2017. In 2018, Verizon achieved a series of technological firsts with the company's 5G technology partners, including:

First video call placed over a pre-commercial 5G connection on a prototype 5G device at the 2018 Super Bowl, with Samsung in February.
First 5G NR data transmission in a lab with Nokia and Qualcomm in February.
First two-way data transmission of 3GPP 5G NR and the first use of multi-carrier aggregation to boost the signal into the Gbps range — outdoors — with Nokia in June.
First transmission of a 5G NR signal to a receiver in a moving vehicle, with Nokia in August.
First data transmission on a commercially deployed 5G NR network in Washington, D.C. in September, with Nokia.
First data transmission over commercial 5G NR network equipment to a prototype smartphone device in Minneapolis, with Ericsson and Qualcomm in September.

Verizon has led the technology industry with a clear focus on bringing 5G service to consumers as quickly as possible. That is why the 5G Home service is built on a proprietary 5G TF standard; Verizon is able to deliver results and a 5G network faster than waiting for the formal 3GPP 5G NR standard to be incorporated into network equipment, devices, chipsets and software. As Verizon's 5G technology partners bring that hardware, software, chipsets and devices to market using the 3GPP 5G NR standard, Verizon will upgrade First On 5G Members to that equipment at no charge. When new network equipment is available and introduced, Verizon will expand their 5G broadband internet coverage area quickly and bring 5G to additional cities.

“We spent the last three years driving the industry to bring 5G to consumers as soon as possible,” said Ronan Dunne, head of Verizon’s wireless business. “We developed early standards that allowed the industry and hardware and software manufacturers to build solutions more quickly. As a result of this initiative and ongoing collaboration, we will rapidly deliver the promise of 5G to our customers.”