# Verizon Fios to Frontier



## ustavio (Oct 19, 2013)

It is my understanding that Verizon is bailing out of California, Texas and Florida. I understand that this has been delayed from March 1st to April 1st but it is still, dare I say, annoying on many levels. I haven't received ANY notice that this is happening other than what I have ascertained via various news and/or blog sources.

Apparently, I must move my Verizon.net email accounts to AOL by either March 15 or March 29 or LOSE everything???? Jeez!!! Why can't I just migrate to a Google account?

The Verizon site doesn't offer much and neither does Frontier. Frontier can't just migrate the email account to Frontier dot whatever?

Not to mention that HBO Go, Showtime Anytime, Epix et.al. all use the Verizon account as the "portal" to sign in tho their respective accounts. 

Is Anyone else experiencing this? 
Any advice or insights?
Is Frontier any better or worse than Verizon Fios?

I am not usually one to freak out but this is truly aggravating because I have not heard from either Verizon or Frontier that this is happening. It's only because of what I have read on the web that I even know!

And to make matters even more interesting, my contract with Verizon ends on April 16.

Frankly, this transition has been handled very poorly and makes me consider jumping elsewhere but (as usual) the choices are slim.

Help!


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

ustavio said:


> Apparently, I must move my Verizon.net email accounts to AOL by either March 15 or March 29 or LOSE everything???? Jeez!!! Why can't I just migrate to a Google account?
> 
> Any advice or insights?
> Help!


Get a gmail account. I've had one for ten years. I have switched internet providers several times and I use Outlook to get my mail from my ISP which gets my mail from Google. You can have Google forward your mail, or configure most mail programs to access it directly. Gmail has a good spam filter.

I still have a Verizon email account even though I dropped them years ago. None of this is related to loss of FiOS. My entry point is still Verizon.yahoo.com since I use their finance page a lot.


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## TiVotion (Dec 6, 2002)

I have many of the same concerns since I heard the announcement last year.

Mind you, I'm not in a deep love affair with Verizon by any means. I've had my share, both personal and business, of getting stuck in endless loops in their automated phone system, among other things. However, on balance, I can't complain too much about them. They have made improvements, and FIOS is a wonderful product.

However, I've heard nothing but bad things about Frontier. I'm not looking forward to this.

I also received the email about having to migrate my email account(s) to AOL. I didn't even connect it with the Frontier transition, oddly enough. But I did it. It seemed odd. Fortunately, I use my verizon.net accounts mostly as throwaways anyway, and I pretty much use Gmail for personal stuff.

That's the only announcement I received. At work, I use Verizon for some of my phone lines and I have FIOS servicing the company. The only notification we received there was a letter in regular mail saying we had the option to switch long distance carriers before the migration. It confused the accounting person.

Does anyone here have Frontier and can give us any positive insight into this company? I would expect that the current FIOS service offerings/tiers will change, no?


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## ncted (May 13, 2007)

TiVotion said:


> I have many of the same concerns since I heard the announcement last year.
> 
> Mind you, I'm not in a deep love affair with Verizon by any means. I've had my share, both personal and business, of getting stuck in endless loops in their automated phone system, among other things. However, on balance, I can't complain too much about them. They have made improvements, and FIOS is a wonderful product.
> 
> ...


I live in a former Verizon market that never got Fios, despite years of promises by VZ. When Frontier took over, it was rocky at the start, but things have improved dramatically in the past few years. They are spending tons of money rolling out gigabit fiber to our area. I have their VDSL2 service which is good, but not the fastest. I like them a whole lot better than TWC, but I don't have any experience with them on the TV side of things. I hear the Uverse markets they took over in Connecticut had a lot of problems at first too.


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## fcfc2 (Feb 19, 2015)

ustavio said:


> It is my understanding that Verizon is bailing out of California, Texas and Florida. I understand that this has been delayed from March 1st to April 1st but it is still, dare I say, annoying on many levels. I haven't received ANY notice that this is happening other than what I have ascertained via various news and/or blog sources.
> 
> Apparently, I must move my Verizon.net email accounts to AOL by either March 15 or March 29 or LOSE everything???? Jeez!!! Why can't I just migrate to a Google account?
> 
> ...


Hi,
I am in Florida and got an email notice about a week ago to switch. I went through with the instructions, which were very easy as I recall. You keep your email address and I kept my same password. According to posts in the Verizon DSLReports forums, the Tampa Bay area has now been switched over to AOL. Not sure what is going on with sub-accounts as I don't have any. I setup my email accounts to download via Office 2007 but I really use gmail for everything but get the occasional download from the Verizon address and the only thing I have noticed is that I get an occasional outlook notice to enter my password which is already saved but I just click the save and close it. I have sent test emails to the verizon account and they go through quickly and download. There is a link with more information below.
https://www.dslreports.com/forum/r30537071-Anyone-moved-email-from-Verizon-to-AOL-yet
My contract is not going to end until May, but I am going to sign up for a "new" 2 year one in a few days. This seems to be the cheapest way for me to keep what I have for the longest time. I have not seen any official date given for the switch over to Frontier just guesstimates. 
Based on previous transitions from Verizon to Frontier, the consensus expectation is poor, and because Frontier is assuming a massive debt and additional costs, the expectation is that they will look for every opportunity to bump up prices as soon as they can. This is why I am going to lock in my services now before the switch. You should be able to do the same thing and I would seriously consider it.


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## ustavio (Oct 19, 2013)

JoeKustra said:


> Get a gmail account. I've had one for ten years. I have switched internet providers several times and I use Outlook to get my mail from my ISP which gets my mail from Google. You can have Google forward your mail, or configure most mail programs to access it directly. Gmail has a good spam filter.
> 
> I still have a Verizon email account even though I dropped them years ago. None of this is related to loss of FiOS. My entry point is still Verizon.yahoo.com since I use their finance page a lot.


So if I understand correctly, I can migrate everything on my Verizon.net account to a Gmail account and not lose anything? I've have archived stuff from way back when it was Roadrunner (GTE).

BTW from hat I've read the Verizon.yahoo.com is history as well. You might want to investigate.


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## ustavio (Oct 19, 2013)

So this may be totally unrelated but I'm getting pretty fed up with the costs and changes and the fact that I don't watch most of the channels I'm paying for. 

Bottom line? How does one actually "cut the cord"? I would be content with local news, sports, Netflix, Amazon Prime , HBO GO, Showtime Anywhere etc. I'm really quite fed up with generic cable. I want to be able to choose what I pay for and watch. I really don't care to subsidize the latest Turkish soap opera, Vietnamese talk shows or the ever expanding Mexican offerings (although I am fluent in Spanish) because I just want to watch what I want to watch. 

I'm really quite weary of paying so much bloody money every month when there is only so very little worth watching!


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## ncted (May 13, 2007)

ustavio said:


> So this may be totally unrelated but I'm getting pretty fed up with the costs and changes and the fact that I don't watch most of the channels I'm paying for.
> 
> Bottom line? How does one actually "cut the cord"? I would be content with local news, sports, Netflix, Amazon Prime , HBO GO, Showtime Anywhere etc. I'm really quite fed up with generic cable. I want to be able to choose what I pay for and watch. I really don't care to subsidize the latest Turkish soap opera, Vietnamese talk shows or the ever expanding Mexican offerings (although I am fluent in Spanish) because I just want to watch what I want to watch.
> 
> I'm really quite weary of paying so much bloody money every month when there is only so very little worth watching!


Here is what I did:

1. Bought an antenna which will work for your location. antennaweb.org is a good place to help you determine this. This make take a good bit of experimentation on your part as RF signals can be difficult in some locations.

2. Once I was happy with my signal, I got an OTA DVR. I got a Roamio OTA, but there are other options out there from Tivo and others. Get what you think will do what you want.

3. With the Roamio, I got Minis to supplement the other TVs in the house.

4. I sub to Netflix and Amazon Prime. You can get Showtime Anywhere through Amazon now. HBO Go is only available with a cable or satellite subscription, but HBO Now is available on streaming devices other than Tivo. I use an AppleTV for this.

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions you don't want to ask in an open forum.

Ted


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## ncted (May 13, 2007)

ustavio said:


> So this may be totally unrelated but I'm getting pretty fed up with the costs and changes and the fact that I don't watch most of the channels I'm paying for.
> 
> Bottom line? How does one actually "cut the cord"? I would be content with local news, sports, Netflix, Amazon Prime , HBO GO, Showtime Anywhere etc. I'm really quite fed up with generic cable. I want to be able to choose what I pay for and watch. I really don't care to subsidize the latest Turkish soap opera, Vietnamese talk shows or the ever expanding Mexican offerings (although I am fluent in Spanish) because I just want to watch what I want to watch.
> 
> I'm really quite weary of paying so much bloody money every month when there is only so very little worth watching!


You mention sports. Is the sports available on your local channels good enough? If not, what sports do you like? There are some solutions that are better than others.


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## atmuscarella (Oct 11, 2005)

ustavio said:


> So this may be totally unrelated but I'm getting pretty fed up with the costs and changes and the fact that I don't watch most of the channels I'm paying for.
> 
> Bottom line? How does one actually "cut the cord"? I would be content with local news, sports, Netflix, Amazon Prime , HBO GO, Showtime Anywhere etc. I'm really quite fed up with generic cable. I want to be able to choose what I pay for and watch. I really don't care to subsidize the latest Turkish soap opera, Vietnamese talk shows or the ever expanding Mexican offerings (although I am fluent in Spanish) because I just want to watch what I want to watch.
> 
> I'm really quite weary of paying so much bloody money every month when there is only so very little worth watching!


How to "cute the cord" is easy. Call your Pay TV provider and cancel your service.

But as you have identified how to replace the content being provided by your Pay TV provider is the hard part. First if you have a family and watch allot of diverse TV it is unlikely you can replace the content without spending as much or more. Second if you don't have access to several ISPs and your current Pay TV provider is your ISP you likely will still be better off financially staying with their Pay TV service.

The reality is that Pay TV providers and the media producers in general have "addicted" the general public to their services. The only real way for people to "cute the cord" and save allot of money is to adjusted their attitudes about TV in general. If you can get over having to watch a particular show or a particular sporting event and/or reduce your viewing time down some then it becomes easier to live without a Pay TV provider. I currently only pay for Amazon Prime, to rent/buy a few Blu-rays and to go to the movie theater, along with OTA and free streaming content I have more to watch than I am willing to spend time on.

Good Luck,


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

ustavio said:


> So if I understand correctly, I can migrate everything on my Verizon.net account to a Gmail account and not lose anything? I've have archived stuff from way back when it was Roadrunner (GTE).
> 
> BTW from hat I've read the Verizon.yahoo.com is history as well. You might want to investigate.


Nothing is automatic. I have all my internet services (bank, TiVo, etc.) going to gmail.com and it forwards to my real ISP. That gives me two levels of spam blocking also.

My home page is Verizon.yahoo.com since I had Verizon DSL in 1995 but I'll keep an eye out. 

My Verizon.net account still has mail in it from three years ago.

More Frontier info: https://www.dslreports.com/forum/frontiernet


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## ustavio (Oct 19, 2013)

Thank you all for your thoughtful replies, suggestions and links. I can see that this is going to require a little investigation (Frontier) and contemplation (cutting the cord) on my part. I have some further thoughts and questions.

Unfortunately (and fortunately), my daughter (and her boyfriend) surprised us with a weekend visit to watch the Oscars together. I would love to keep this thread open, however, for those of us going through the switch as there are probably many in three states who are doing so.

I will try to pick back up with this when I can during this surprise mini-family reunion. But will certainly do so once the weekend is over.

Once again, thank you all. This is the first place I come when I have TiVo related "stuff" and am never disappointed. 

P.S. Since my previous post we also experienced a nearly 5 hour internet and cable "outage" that was actually "planned" to be 10 hours. It was completely unannounced but I was told by Verizon that it had to do with "switching" the platform from Verizon to Frontier. 

Since that time, there has been increased audio and video pixilation on numerous channels and TiVo diagnostics show stats all over the place. I replaced a 3.5 in line spliter with a 7.5 and rebooted the VZ Actiontec router but haven't noticed much difference. 

Egad! A portent of things to come?


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## TiVotion (Dec 6, 2002)

Well I got a letter in the mail yesterday about the transition. Went online and created my Frontier user ID. 

I'm a little confused. My Verizon app shows I paid my bill two days ago on the due date, which was 3/23. In the new customer account portal for Frontier, it shows I need to pay the bill by 3/29. Is it possible I need to pay Frontier again on the 29th?


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## ustavio (Oct 19, 2013)

I would not pay it again especially if the check has cleared. I surmise that those of us going through this "seamless" transition from Verizon to Frontier can either be: 1. Amazed by how easy and wonderful the experience was or..
2. Be completely unsurprised by what an enormous clusterf$$k we had to endure. 

When one thinks about new user ID's and the fact that using any online or any User verification that relied on a Verizon Account ( HBO GO, Netflix, Amazon Prime yada yada...) .i.e. ANYTHING tied to Verizon now being tied to Frontier... well, I can only imagine how easily things can go sour. The fact that we will be dealing with an entirely different corporate entity (which will apparently employ the same Verizon employees) could lead to situations like "we have no record of that".....

I am trying to be optimistic but reality has taken a chunk out of my a$$ far more often than I would like.

Hope for the best. Prepare for the worst.


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## TiVotion (Dec 6, 2002)

Yeah I agree. I've read/heard not so great things about Frontier in other parts of the country. At times Verizon could be frustrating especially their customer support phone system but I figure it could always be worse. I guess we are about to find out. I didn't realize that Frontier was keeping the Verizon employees but I guess it makes sense because if they are taking on all those new customers they'll need more employees.


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## ustavio (Oct 19, 2013)

Well it seems that access to Showtime Anytime, HBO Go, Epix Online, and Max Go (which were all included with Verizon Fios) are not accessible through Frontier Fios. This was part of the (nothing will change) bundle I purchased. Frontier has a TV Anywhere feature that is currently inaccessible, has an insecure Log In, and (from what I can find) apparently has slim pickins' . Still getting HBO GO via TiVo but it identifies as via Verizon so I can't help but wonder if it too will no longer function at some point. 

No one at Frontier seems to know much of anything about anything either.

Also: had to reset phone message notifications yet again.

Not real happy with the transition so far.


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## TonyD79 (Jan 4, 2002)

It's not the first transfer. You'd think they'd get it right this time. 

Fios sells me to frontier someday and I'm gone.


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## ustavio (Oct 19, 2013)

TonyD79 said:


> It's not the first transfer. You'd think they'd get it right this time.
> 
> Fios sells me to frontier someday and I'm gone.


Only other option for me is TWC plus I'm locked in until April 2017 (or 2016 depending on who you talk to).

Tried to reset phone message notifications again and the option to receive them (stutter tone/blinking light) is now gone! There have been a LOT of important calls missed and/or never received. This is extremely unacceptable.

I'll give them through the weekend before trying to get some coherent answers. If not completely satisfied, I'll demand out of contract based on lack of fulfillment of said contract on their end. If there is still no joy, I'll probably jump anyway and let them sue me. The FCC and FTC will also hear from me.

I am beyond annoyed.


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## TiVotion (Dec 6, 2002)

Big cluster this weekend in the Tampa area. Many new Frontier customers without service due to what Frontier is calling a technical glitch. Friday morning the AT&T cell network went down in the area as well and there are reports the outages were related.

http://www.tbo.com/news/business/ou...-over-verizon-service-in-tampa-area-20160401/

Oddly my business is right in the heart of the affected area and we never lost Internet. I live North of the outage and also didn't lose service at home.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I've heard nothing but bad things about Frontier from people in the Northwest. Really dreading having them as my new provider.


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## naranja (Jan 7, 2005)

The switch went off without a hitch for me until today when I tried to upgrade my Premier to a Roamio. I moved the cable card to my new machine and was getting some but not all channels. After about an hour on the phone and with no success Frontier deleted my cable card from the system but could not add it back. So now no channels. 

They indicated it's a glitch in the system that should be fixed in a few days, call them back Friday. My impression is that they don't have the ability to add anyone's customer owned Tivos.


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## tarheelblue32 (Jan 13, 2014)

naranja said:


> The switch went off without a hitch for me until today when I tried to upgrade my Premier to a Roamio. I moved the cable card to my new machine and was getting some but not all channels. After about an hour on the phone and with no success Frontier deleted my cable card from the system but could not add it back. So now no channels.
> 
> They indicated it's a glitch in the system that should be fixed in a few days, call them back Friday. My impression is that they don't have the ability to add anyone's customer owned Tivos.


That's completely unacceptable. I strongly suggest that you file a complaint with the FCC:

https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov/hc/en-us


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## tampa8 (Jan 26, 2016)

And complain about what? That Frontier has an outage, can't add customers at the moment? As a wild guess Frontier did not want this problem anymore than customers do.


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## tarheelblue32 (Jan 13, 2014)

tampa8 said:


> And complain about what? That Frontier has an outage, can't add customers at the moment?


Yes. You can absolutely file a complaint about those things.


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## tampa8 (Jan 26, 2016)

Waste of everyone's time.


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## ciscokid (Jan 14, 2003)

ncted said:


> Here is what I did:
> 
> 1. Bought an antenna which will work for your location. antennaweb.org is a good place to help you determine this. This make take a good bit of experimentation on your part as RF signals can be difficult in some locations.
> 
> ...


How much is your internet service now vs what it was before?


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## tarheelblue32 (Jan 13, 2014)

tampa8 said:


> Waste of everyone's time.


I disagree. Frontier is the one wasting everyone's time with their incompetence. Maybe if more people filed FCC complaints, that would change.


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## naranja (Jan 7, 2005)

tarheelblue32 said:


> I disagree. Frontier is the one wasting everyone's time with their incompetence. Maybe if more people filed FCC complaints, that would change.


Fortunately, I've got numerous other options to watch my shows. I'll wait and see how they handle things Friday. I don't mind wasting their time if they can't get their act together. Thanks for the link.


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## ncted (May 13, 2007)

ciscokid said:


> How much is your internet service now vs what it was before?


I was paying $69/month for 30/5 from TWC with a modem I owned. I am now paying $45/month for 24/2 from Frontier which includes a free modem.

The Frontier service, especially Netflix, it actually better in many respects than TWC. The fact that TWC oversold their network in my neighborhood combined with Frontier's participation in Netflix's Open Connect CDN makes a huge difference. Measured latency is higher on the Frontier service according to speed tests, but first byte times measured in Google Chrome developer tools are actually lower on Frontier.

Google Fiber is coming to town in the next couple of years. I fully expect to happily pay the $70/month for that.


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## rainwater (Sep 21, 2004)

tampa8 said:


> Waste of everyone's time.


Actually, FCC complaints have shown to be very effective. In fact, in many cases, it is the only solution. You could probably read over a thousand success stories on this forum alone.


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