That's not a good analogy. Home phone pots is reliable and regulated. VoIP information services are not. I can choose between two bad providers here in NYC (time warner cable and Verizon dsl), both of which suffer from regular outtages, often lasting a day or longer.
Except that Verizon's phone service over fiber is priced and regulated in exactly the same way as their copper service. It is still effectively the same landline service.
Forcing Verizon to maintain copper means slower rollout of fiber and slower internet. It isn't reasonable for people (Ars) to want faster better internet service, and also to complain when copper is removed.
"Call Restrictions: You cannot receive Collect or third Party Calls, and you cannot place 900 calls using FiOS Digital Voice"
"Battery Back Up In case of a power outage, FiOS Digital Voice will operate on battery back up for approximately 8 hours if an active battery is inserted in the Battery Backup Unit"
That is not the same quality of service that I expect from my copper POTS service.
Verizon's POTS over fiber product is nearly impossible to get. It's unavailable online. Calling in they claim they've never heard of it according to multiple people who have tried.
It doesn't matter if you force Verizon to maintain copper or not, Verizon cancelled all new FiOS rollouts back in 2010. Unless you're in an area already serviced by FiOS and under an agreement, you won't get fiber from Verizon. Note that they will finish the few bits of neighborhoods where they have an agreement and most of the fiber laid... eventually... unless they decide to renege on their promises, of course. Verizon agreed to set FiOS up for all of NYC by 2014 and has been trying to weasel out of that agreement for over 2 years. My neighborhood has no fiber service yet.
It's hard to get except in the exact situation the original article is talking about. They will give you FIOS pots when they are just trying to get rid of copper.
They stopped rolling out fiber because they needed to improve adoption in areas where they already deployed. Supporting copper is slowing the whole thing down.
They stopped the rollout in 2010 and laid the majority of the staff working on it off. Verizon has already stated they have no plan to ever roll out to the remaining areas not already under agreement.
In theory, sure. You can get POTS service over fiber - and Verizon used to install it all the time, but now they try very aggressively to steer you towards their digital voice product.
I'm not in Verizon territory, but I did try ordering the Verizon Freedom Package earlier today from their website (POTS + unlimited LD, an asston of features) just for the purposes of arguing in Manhattan, an area where FiOS service is offered.
Nothing I tried would let me order that; I'd always, inevitably be redirected back to the digital voice order page.
