Verizon will have a smaller footprint in apartment buildings thanks to the company’s new optical network terminals. 

Verizon said the new ONTs are about the size of a home router and take up less space in multiple-dwelling units (MDUs). The ONTs can be placed under desks or on shelves during FiOS Internet and FiOS TV installations.

The electronic devices link Verizon's fiber-optic network to the wiring inside a customer's home and convert light pulses into electromagnetic signals that are fed to the broadband home router and TV set-top boxes that provide the FiOS TV and broadband services.

One of the two new devices, the Alcatel-Lucent I-21 1M-K indoor ONT, measures 1 1/4 inches high, 8 1/2 inches wide and 5 1/2 inches deep. The other device, the Motorola ONT 1000 GTI indoor ONT, is slightly larger, but Verizon didn’t provide the exact size. Alcatel and Motorola developed the equipment, based on Verizon specifications.

"Space is a precious commodity in apartment buildings, and these new, smaller ONTs were specifically designed with that in mind," said Eric Cevis, vice president of Verizon enhanced communities. "We've downsized the equipment and minimized the hassles for property owners, making FiOS an even more attractive service offering for residents of multiple-dwelling units."

Verizon said the two versions of the smaller ONTs are being deployed in parts of the New York, southern California and Tampa Bay markets. Verizon said the ONTs are being tested in product development laboratories and in customers' homes.