As the United States approaches the end of a decade, it’s becoming inconceivably clear that the competition amongst technology-based companies is growing and becoming more about who brings what to the table. Envision the market as a dinner party hosted by different restaurants in order to showcase their cuisine. In this scenario the consumers are the guests and companies are the hosts. The hosts, in order to impress their guests, try to create the best meal as to encourage their guests to choose them from amongst the other hosts. While they all seemingly serve the same foods, the hosts differ in presentation, quality of cooking, and pricing. The guests on, the other hand, are finicky and are always selective as to what they choose to eat taking all these issues into account. For about a decade or so, the hosts, AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon have been serving the same entrée, a 3-G network. However, as technology continues to evolve along with the “taste-buds” of their guests, the hosts must develop a new entrée to serve as their main-course, and this new dish is the 4-G network.

As the old idiom goes “out with the old, in with the new”, such can be said about the outgoing, perhaps even obsolete 3rd-generation, or 3g, Internet network. 4-G, or the fourth generation network, promises to be a faster, stronger, and overall better than its predecessor. Verizon, a company that has become synonymous with nation-wide coverage and connection-strength, has launched their attempt at the 4-G plate. Their product, entitled Verizon Long Term Evolution, or simply Verizon (LTE), has recently debuted in Boston and 29 other markets in the United States, covering about 100 million people. Their goal as they promote this product is to have nation-wide coverage of their 4-G network by 2013.

For those readers whom are unaware of this new technology, 4-G is a wireless Internet network that will allow consumers to view the web at faster speeds, meaning faster streaming of video and music, as well as faster uploads and download speeds. Verizon, one of the leading pioneers and providers of this product, has launched a marketing campaign that will eventually turn 4-G into a house-hold product and name. Verizon has begun shopping their product through means of technology fairs, and even setting up bandwidth and test trials at coffee shops as seen on Youtube. As coffee shop goers and technology experts alike can attest, the speed is completely real. The 4-G Verizon (LTE) network promises to be more than 3 times faster than its 3-G former, and their technology can extend further than just cellular phones, to laptops, wireless cards, etc.

Verizon hopes that its 4-G product will revolutionize the way people connect to the Internet. The company hopes that within 3 years it will eliminate the need to search wi-fi and hot spots throughout different cities in order to connect to the Internet. This should be a godsend to businessmen in the stock exchange or your average college student who are always looking for new ways to stay connected. Verizon has also planned to incorporate and embed their 4-G (LTE) network into other technologies that aren’t necessarily related with wireless Internet connect-ability, such as cars and planes. With such innovation and marketing strategies, Verizon has set the standard to what the 4-G capabilities are and what they can, and will, accomplish once it debuts to the public on a national scale.