Company engineers’ relentless focus on innovation leads to numerous network milestones

NEW YORK, Dec. 26, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — We don’t wait for the future. We build it. At Verizon, it’s not just a motto – it’s the way we work. In 2018, we ushered in the beginning of the fourth industrial revolution by introducing the world’s first commercial 5G service, Verizon 5G Home, in areas of Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles and Sacramento. Built on the world’s first and only 5G Ultra Wideband Network, we were first in the world to provide a commercial 5G network, with plans for expansion of broadband internet and the launch of 5G mobility service.

First to 5G

In 2018, we achieved a series of 5G technological firsts with our 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 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 commercial hardware 5G NR network in Washington DC 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.
• First 5G data transmission on a smartphone, using the Motorola moto z3 paired with a 5G moto mod, the world’s first 5G-upgradeable smartphone, with Samsung and Qualcomm, in November.
• First video call from a 5G smartphone to a 5G smartphone over a 5G network in the United States, with Samsung, in December.

“Throughout the years, we’ve created platforms that have spurred technological innovation and economic development, introducing mobile data and then really making mobile internet and the ecosystem around it ubiquitous with 4G LTE.  We think what happened with 4G was small compared to the possibilities we open up with 5G.  Enabling ultra-reliable, low-latency connections at scale, and moving cloud computing capabilities to the edge builds a platform that will allow society to create things we can’t even imagine yet.  2018 was a huge year in advancing that new technology,” said Kyle Malady, Chief Technology Officer.

Continued investment and innovation in 4G LTE Advanced Technologies

While focusing on driving 5G innovation in the wireless industry, we continued our relentless focus on innovation and continued investment in our award-winning 4G LTE network, underscoring our commitment to our customers to make the best network experience even better.

In 2018, we continued our network leadership by:

• Completing a Massive MIMO trial with a fully compatible customer device using a T9 chipset.
• Bringing together partners in the CBRS Ecosystem to further develop use of this spectrum.
• Successfully testing 4G LTE technology over CBRS spectrum (Citizens Broadband Radio Service) on Verizon’s live commercial network. 
• Driving XRAN Fronthaul standards.
• Achieving 1.45 gigabits per second on our 4G LTE network by continuing to refine our LTE Advanced technologies.

The last year also saw significant advancements for enterprise customers, including some key milestones in the development of networks for IoT applications including:

• Adding voice capabilities to our CatM network to offer even more IoT solutions choices.
• Carrying a successful data session on the new NB IoT Guardband network.

Continued focus on infrastructure to strengthen our networks

In 2018, fiber took center stage as we advanced deployment of our deep fiber network while working to converge our services on that fiber infrastructure and deploy newer technologies to create even greater capabilities within our fiber footprint.  Some of those efforts included:

• Deployment of thousands of additional miles of fiber infrastructure enabled us to activate thousands of new small cells, improving our 4G LTE capacity and preparing for wide-scale 5G deployments.
• An enhanced partnership with Boston to accelerate small cell network deployment and expand our Fios fiber network, doubling our original $300 million fiber investment announced in 2016 with another $300 million commitment.  
• Continued advancements in our fiber technologies to meet the growing throughput and bandwidth demands by demonstrating NGPON2 technology on our live fiber network.
• Streamlining the network to operate more efficiently and increase functionality for customers.
• A successful industry first 400G trial delivering live 400 Gbps Ethernet traffic on a single wavelength between MPLS Core routers over our Packet-Optical network.

Our network was there for our communities and first responders when we were needed most

When Hurricanes Florence and Michael devastated parts of the southeast and wildfires destroyed tens of thousands of acres of land in California, Verizon was there to provide reliable communications when our customers and first responders needed us most.  Verizon remains committed to those communities, donating millions of dollars to disaster recovery efforts and helping repair and rebuild those communities.

Third-Party Network Awards:

While we’re making these breakthroughs to offer the best experience for you possible, our engineers’ tireless efforts have not gone unnoticed. Some of the independent, third party recognition and awards our teams won on behalf of our customers in 2018 include: 

• Tutela named Verizon the Best Network in their 2018 US Mobile Network Quality study. The report noted that Verizon had “the highest levels of consistency” in network performance nationwide. Verizon won more than twice the number of states than the next provider. 
• P3 Communications awarded Verizon “BEST in test,” reporting that our network achieved the highest overall score in their nationwide network performance study, the P3 Mobile Benchmark US.
• In their 2H 2018 U.S. Metro RootScore Reports drivetests of 95 of the 125 metro areas today, RootMetrics reports that Verizon is undefeated in 90 (95%).  This includes 45 outright wins and 45 ties in the overall category.
• This summer, Verizon was ranked #1 in the nation for a record 10th time in a row by RootMetrics in their 1H 2018 RootScore Report.
• Verizon received more awards for the 21st time in a row than any other wireless provider in the J.D. Power Wireless Network Quality Performance Study 2018 V2.
• Our network has been recognized as best in streaming.
• Our network was declared the largest 4G LTE footprint “by far” on the U.S. Interstate System in the recent Connectivity on Interstates Report by P3 (based on data collected between March and May 2018).

2019: Innovation and Continued Technology Leadership

At Verizon we have a saying:  Our best was good for today – tomorrow we’ll do better.  Our relentless focus on better is what drives us.  2018 was a banner year for Verizon’s network.  2019 will bring even greater innovations and opportunities for our customers.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ), headquartered in New York City, generated $126 billion in 2017 revenues. The company operates America’s most reliable wireless network and the nation’s premier all-fiber network and delivers integrated solutions to businesses worldwide. Verizon’s corporate responsibility prioritizes the environmental, social and governance issues most relevant to its business and impact to society. Its Oath subsidiary reaches people around the world with a dynamic house of media and technology brands.

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Media contact:
Karen Schulz
864.561.1527
[email protected]
Twitter: @VZWKarenS