US telecommunication giant Verizon has moved to ease fears concerning a drop in its wireless service revenue by claiming the decline is a result of its increased focus on its 5G mobile plans.
Verizon CEO, Lowell McAdam shrugged off the suggestion the operator was going through a difficult period and claimed that the company was well-positioned for future growth due to the blueprint it has put in place for its 5G services.
The next-generation technology featured prominently in the operator's Q4 2017 financial report which was publicly released this week. Verizon is leading with its fixed-wireless services, but its strategy is to implement a full range of 5G services, including mobility, home broadband, Internet of Things and sub-millisecond use cases.
McAdam highlighted how competitive the telecommunications sector is but was adamant that the operator wouldn't lead the sector downward on price. However, he did point out that it aims to leverage its asset portfolio to be competitive in a way that others won't be able to compete as 5G deployments commence.
McAdam said, "There's an insatiable demand for broadband, and it's not mobile and it's not fixed. Customers don't care. I think who wins is going to be able to provide them the service that they can move seamlessly from fixed to mobile."
Whilst he declined to give any specific details about Verizon's mobile 5G plans, McAdam did concede that many operators expect to see 5G-capable mobile devices by the end of the year with more 5G releases commencing in 2019.
Its net income soared from $4.4 billion in Q4 2016 to $18.7 in the last quarter of 2017 and total revenue grew by 5% year-on-year to $33.9 billion. However, its wireless service revenue dipped by 2.9% despite the telco amassing net additions of 1.2 million post-paid connections, which includes 431,000 net subscriber additions.
McAdam said Verizon is continuing its fixed-wireless 5G trials, with more than 200 sites up and running. With tests yielding peak speeds of 10GB/s, McAdam added: "We are very comfortable with being able to deliver a gigabit of service to everyone that we're providing service to."