In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdams confirmed that the wireless carrier is considering rural carriers as a means of expanding its 4G network. Under this plan, Verizon Wireless would license its 4G spectrum for a small fee to rural operators who could then re-sell the service. Either Verizon or the operator would assume the cost of building out the network and each would benefit from the agreement – Verizon would get a wider 4G footprint and the rural carrier would receive local mobile broadband coverage and a roaming agreement for coverage outside of its home network. Folks with more deer than people should not jump for joy quite yet as McAdams confirms that this is a low profit initiative for Verizon and, as such, may take a while to roll out. Nonetheless, those whose only option for broadband is still 56K dial up would agree that late is better than never.
