Verizon FiOS users will notice that their channel listings have shrunk today, it’s not a significant change by any means, but will certainly make a difference to those who like to keep up on all weather related news. The Weather Channel has been dropped from Verizon FiOS. Verizon today sent an email to all customers notifying them that the channel has been removed from listings and the reason is simple, more people now use their smartphones and other mobile devices to check the weather than they do through a dedicated channel for the weather.
“In today’s environment, customers are increasingly accessing weather information not only from their TV but from a variety of online sources and apps,” says Verizon in its email.
There are already a plethora of weather apps available for mobile devices and it doesn’t matter what platform you’re on, be it iOS, Android, BlackBerry or Windows Phone, besides most mobile devices often have native apps and services that put weather information in immediate reach of the user.
Verizon’s explanation aside, it seems like there is more here than meets the eye, possibly a financial impasse between the two companies is a major reason why The Weather Channel has been dropped from FiOS and effectively immediately the AccuWeather Network is being added to channel selection.