US operator Verizon Wireless will turn its commercial LTE networks on during the fourth quarter of this year, helping to deliver on its target to serve up to 100 million Americans in 25 to 30 markets by the end of 2010. “In the fourth quarter, we’ll be turning on markets as planned,” Verizon CTO Dick Lynch (pictured) told Sidecut Reports. Exact commercial launch dates in the October to December timeframe are yet to be confirmed. Trials with ‘friendly users’ (usually company employees and other partners) will take place during the third quarter.

Lynch’s comments came as the operator announced plans to next year open a technology innovation centre in Waltham, Boston, desgned to foster the development of products outside of the traditional mobile phone or laptop cards that are able to tap into the operator’s new LTE network. Described as the “brainchild” of Lynch, the centre aims to ensure a broad array of devices will be compatible with LTE technology. Once live, Verizon expects the networks to offer average downlink data rates of 5-12 Mb/s, and 2-5Mb/s on the uplink, performances it claims are similar to that of a fixed Internet experience. Prices and the associated data download limits are not yet known (although there is talk of the operator switching to a ‘usage-based’ pricing model, rather than the traditional ‘all-you-can-eat’ mobile broadband data models).