Verizon, New York City Agree On Proposed Terms Of TV Service

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By Roger Cheng
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) and New York City agreed to proposed terms that would enable the telephone company to begin offering television service in the city.

While a step in the right direction for the New York telco, it still needs to gain approval from the city’s Franchise and Concession Review Committee, which has scheduled a hearing on May 20, before it can offer TV.

Verizon is spending $18 billion to upgrade its network nationwide with faster fiber-optic lines directly to many of its customers’ homes. The faster lines allow for the delivery of a faster Internet connection and TV service. In order to provide TV service, however, the carrier needs to get permission from individual cities.

 

Verizon’s entrance would give New Yorkers another TV option beyond cable and satellite TV.

“With the introduction of direct competition among cable companies, prices and service levels would reflect real market forces, and New York City customers would be the beneficiaries,” Deputy Mayor Robert C. Lieber said in a statement.

Verizon has said it plans to market its television service, which falls under the FiOS brand, to parts of New York later this year. FiOS Internet is already available in select neighborhoods.

The agreement calls for the installation of a fiber-optic system in every street within six years, although options for an extension are included. The company would be required to cover 30% of the city by the end of the year, and half by the end of 2010.

The presence of another option will pressure Time Warner Cable Inc. (TWC) and Cablevision Systems Corp. (CVC), which are current cable providers in New York.

Shares of Verizon were recently trading at $38.19, up 24 cents, or 0.6%.

 

 

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