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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body bgcolor=white lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Sometimes the marketing folks see things rather more clearly than the academics or the policy wonks…<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Now for the policy wonks to try to catch up…<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>M<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:windowtext'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:windowtext'> oia-bounces@lists.bway.net [mailto:oia-bounces@lists.bway.net] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Bruce Kushnick<br><b>Sent:</b> Tuesday, October 30, 2012 7:03 AM<br><b>To:</b> oia@lists.bway.net<br><b>Subject:</b> [OIA] Verizon calls for the return to a utility for broadband and internet..<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><br>Wow -- Verizon agrees with us -- we should make their home internet services - and broadband a utility. --- They even do the research... <br><br>Most Important Home Utility Is Internet Service, According to Survey <br><br><a href="http://www.toonaripost.com/2012/10/life-style/most-important-home-utility-is-internet-service-according-to-survey/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=most-important-home-utility-is-internet-service-according-to-survey">http://www.toonaripost.com/2012/10/life-style/most-important-home-utility-is-internet-service-according-to-survey/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=most-important-home-utility-is-internet-service-according-to-survey</a><o:p></o:p></p><p>Basking Ridge, U.S.A. — <b>More than half (52 percent) of all U.S. Consumers surveyed say Internet service is their home’s most important utility, according to the first in a series of tech consumer research surveys, called the Verizon FiOS Innovation Index: Borderless Lifestyle Survey. </b>And if you have an Internet-connectable device with you at all times whenever you leave your home, there is a good chance that you are one of the nearly 40 percent of Americans that the Index identified as “<span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumers.”<o:p></o:p></p><p>Verizon believes the <a href="http://forums.verizon.com/t5/Verizon-at-Home/Washington-D-C-Techknowledgeables-Value-Borderless-Lifestyle/ba-p/411139" target="_blank">Borderless Lifestyle</a> is a result of the convergence of wired and wireless broadband networks, and the unique user flexibility and personal empowerment that converged services enable. The Borderless Lifestyle is about eliminating the old technology boundaries that used to separate networks and service platforms, home and work, allowing customers to connect and accomplish what they want or need to do, whenever they wish, wherever they are, using the device that they prefer.<o:p></o:p></p><p>“As the <span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumer segment continues to grow, so will the need to identify, understand and anticipate what consumers truly want in their increasingly connected lives – today and in the future,” said <a href="http://gigaom.com/mobile/when-it-comes-to-the-connected-home-its-keep-it-simple-stupid/" target="_blank">Eric Bruno</a>, vice president of FiOS strategy and development for Verizon.<o:p></o:p></p><p><strong>Home is the Hub of Digital Life</strong><o:p></o:p></p><p>The FiOS Innovation Index found that while <span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumers are <a href="http://forums.verizon.com/t5/Verizon-at-Home/TV-or-Not-TV-Answer-Anytime-Anywhere-Any-Device/ba-p/416359" target="_blank">well-equipped for anytime, anywhere online engagement</a>, their digital activities – communication, entertainment and commerce – still revolve around their physical home.<o:p></o:p></p><p>The Index will periodically examine trends in connectivity, device adoption and user experiences that are shaping consumers’ lives and driving innovation in the connected media and services industries. The index will provide insights into large-scale trends for adults living in the U.S. <span class=grcorrect>and</span> explore how they are using advances in technology and innovation to live a life more connected and without borders.<o:p></o:p></p><p><strong>Who are Borderless Consumers?</strong><o:p></o:p></p><p><span class=grcorrect>Borderless</span> consumers are found in every ethnic and age group – from <span class=grcorrect>millennials</span> to generation X, baby boomers and the mature generation – though 18-to-34 year-olds constitute the greatest number of <span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumers. Many are college educated, own their home, and nearly half of them earn $75,000or more annually.<o:p></o:p></p><p>If you are also motivated to make technology and <a href="http://newscenter.verizon.com/press-releases/verizon/2012/verizon-combines-insane.html" target="_blank">connectivity upgrades</a>, and are interested in enjoying the benefits of a digital <a href="https://shop.verizon.com/buy/Monitoring-Energy-Saving/Home-Control/Verizon-Home-Monitoring-and-Control/cat30006" target="_blank">smart home</a>, you are definitely among the 39 percent of U.S. Adults that are living the Borderless Lifestyle.<o:p></o:p></p><p>The study also found that women (53 percent) outnumber men (47 percent) in the <span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumer segment.<o:p></o:p></p><p>According to the <span class=grcorrect>FiOS</span> Innovation Index, 82 percent of <span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumers are interested in using network services like <a href="http://www22.verizon.com/home/utilities/security-backup" target="_blank">cloud-based data storage</a> <span class=grcorrect>to</span> access to their data files using any device, from any location, at any time.<o:p></o:p></p><p>The vast majority (90 percent) <span class=grcorrect>look</span> forward to the day when every connectable device in their house can seamlessly interconnect and work together – via their in-home network or online.<o:p></o:p></p><p>All <span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumers (100 percent) share a common motivation to make technology and <a href="http://www22.verizon.com/home/fios-fastest-internet" target="_blank">connectivity upgrades</a> to enjoy the full benefits of boundary-free living.<o:p></o:p></p><p>The Index also indicates that regardless of whether or not an individual is a <span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumer, more than half of all survey respondents combined (60 percent of <span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumers and 46 percent of non-<span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumers) considered their wired Internet service to be the most important utility in their home.<o:p></o:p></p><p><strong>All Consumers Still Love Watching Live TV</strong><o:p></o:p></p><p>While over-the-top (OTT) video consumption continues to drive Internet traffic growth, its use varies among viewers, depending on their content appetite. While streaming video is primarily adopted by 18- to 34-year-olds across all types of content, the majority of all <span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumers (89 percent) – and non-<span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> consumers (90 percent) – still prefer watching shows on their TVs, according to the survey.<o:p></o:p></p><p>“The broadening appeal of anywhere, anytime connectivity is blurring the boundaries that used to separate the home from everywhere else we go every day, and the Borderless Lifestyle Survey offers clear evidence of that,” said Ruchir Rodrigues, vice president of technology for Verizon.<o:p></o:p></p><p>“Between <span class=grcorrect>smartphones</span>, tablets, laptop and desktop computers, and connected TVs and game consoles, consumers want the benefits, convenience and intuitiveness of a connected life and <a href="http://forums.verizon.com/t5/Verizon-at-Home/Lock-the-doors-Turn-off-the-lights-Lower-the-thermostat-In/ba-p/470833" target="_blank">smart home</a>,” Rodrigues said. “This presents a huge innovation opportunity to the technology community as we all pursue the development of new products, apps and services that expand and enrich our <span class=grcorrect>borderless</span> lifestyle experience.”<o:p></o:p></p><p>The Verizon FiOS Innovation Index: Borderless Lifestyle Survey was conducted in the U.S. <span class=grcorrect>on</span> behalf of Verizon by Harris Interactive on September 7-11 and polled 2,292 adults aged 18 and over. The online survey was not based on a probability sample and therefore cannot be used as an assessment of the general population; nor can a theoretical sampling error be calculated.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>