Verizon raises outlook and inks $2 billion Amazon AI deal
Verizon just raised its profit outlook after signing a $2 billion deal with Amazon.
The short version
- The mobile carrier added 406,000 new phone customers in the latest quarter.
- Profit reached $5.3 billion as phone and broadband revenue climbed.
Why it matters to you. For your business, faster fiber rollouts can mean better internet reliability on your block.
Check your phone bill or internet connection. Verizon, the giant telecommunications provider, just boosted its full-year outlook after signing a massive $2 billion deal with Amazon Web Services, the cloud computing giant owned by Amazon. According to The Wall Street Journal, the mobile carrier will supply dark fiber for artificial intelligence workloads under the agreement.
Chief Executive Dan Schulman told analysts that the biggest builders of AI infrastructure are choosing Verizon as their connectivity partner. The company gained 406,000 net postpaid phone connections in the latest quarter, marking its best third-quarter performance in five years. Analysts expected less than half that number.
Total third-quarter profit reached $5.3 billion, up from $5.06 billion a year earlier. Revenue ticked up 1.5% to $34.3 billion. Mobility and broadband service revenue rose 2.9% to $23.5 billion, even as equipment revenue dropped because customers are holding onto phones longer.
Schulman took the helm of Verizon last October and has shifted the company away from heavy device subsidies. The strong quarter prompted Verizon to raise its full-year earnings guidance and project up to 1.2 million new phone additions for the year.
Photo: Eden, Janine and Jim, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
