Telecommunications company Verizon Communications Inc. announced its fourth quarter earnings fell but declared that sales rose. Verizon"s quarterly earnings fell to $1.0 billion (35 cents per share) compared to last year"s $ 1.7 billion (59 cents per share) mainly thanks to costs related to the sale of its Dominican Republic assets and the spinoff of its directories business. Revenue rose, however, by 26.1% to $22.6 billion, the company noted. Verizon Wireless added 2.3 million net customers in the fourth quarter, bringing its nationwide total to 59.1 million, which includes 7.0 million total high-speed Internet connections at the end of 2006, up 35.7% from last year.