TV Choice and Competition Near for Residents of Fitchburg, Mass.

TV Choice and Competition Near for Residents of Fitchburg, Mass.

Vote Paves the Way for FiOS TV - the Ultimate Home-Upgrade for TV Service Delivered Over the Nation's Most Advanced All-Fiber-Optic Network

FITCHBURG, Mass., Oct. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Residents of Fitchburg are a major step closer to having a real choice for their cable television services, thanks to a newly approved agreement authorizing Verizon to offer its FiOS TV service via the most advanced all-digital, fiber-optic network straight to customers' homes and businesses.

Fitchburg Mayor Lisa A. Wong on Thursday (Oct. 22) granted a cable franchise to Verizon, authorizing video choice for thousands of households here.

The mayor's authorization brings to 103 the total number of Massachusetts communities where Verizon's FiOS TV is or will soon be available.

"We are excited to bring FiOS TV, an outstanding alternative for video entertainment, to residents in Fitchburg," said Donna Cupelo, Verizon region president for New England. "Since the launch of FiOS TV in Massachusetts, we are continuing our efforts to meet the consumer demand for cable TV choice."

Mayor Wong said, "I am thrilled at the investment that Verizon is making in the city of Fitchburg and believe this will help us better serve the residents and businesses of the community."

FiOS TV is the company's advanced fiber-optic television service, with superior picture-and-sound quality, innovative and interactive features, more high-definition and on-demand programs than cable, and more reliable service at competitive prices.

"As a result of this new franchise, consumers in Fitchburg will be able to choose their cable provider as easily as they choose their phone company," said Cupelo. "Competition drives innovation, value and service quality, and it puts the consumer in control."

Verizon research indicates 87 percent of Massachusetts residents favor more competition and choice for video services. Independent studies have shown that competition in the video market brings enormous benefits to consumers in the form of reduced prices, better packages and improved service.

Verizon's license agreement with the city of Fitchburg is for 10 years. The agreement contains provisions for the network's future growth; financial support and capacity for educational and government access channels; cable service to government buildings; and other important benefits to the city, including insurance, indemnification and enforcement protections.

"Verizon will compete aggressively for subscribers in Fitchburg with our FiOS services, which are fueled by our lightning-fast fiber-optic network," Cupelo said. Verizon soon will begin its door-to-door sales campaign in Fitchburg, explaining the many advantages of FiOS TV to local consumers.

Verizon is the first company to offer a fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) network, connecting homes and businesses directly to fiber optics on a widespread scale.

FiOS TV offers a broad collection of programming, with more than 600 all-digital channels in Massachusetts and 18,000 video-on-demand (VOD) titles each month - 70 percent of which are free. Verizon's industry-leading VOD library also includes more than 2,400 HD titles per month.

Fiber delivers amazingly sharp pictures and sound, and has the capacity to transmit a wide array of high-definition programming that is so clear and intense it seems to leap from the TV screen.

In addition to FiOS TV, Verizon's fiber network also allows the company to offer consumers and businesses high-speed FiOS Internet service at download speeds up to 50 Mbps (megabits per second) and upload speeds up to 20 Mbps.*

Verizon also offers a range of fast, affordable DSL-enabled High Speed Internet service with speeds of up to 1 Mbps/384 Kbps (kilobits per second), 3 Mbps/768 Kbps and 7.1 Mbps/768 Kbps* available, as well as wireline voice and all-digital-quality DIRECTV service. For more information on High Speed Internet and Verizon bundled services, visit http://www22.verizon.com/residential/highspeedinternet.

* NOTE: actual (throughput) speeds will vary.

(In Massachusetts, FiOS TV is available in Abington, Acton, Andover, Arlington, Ashland, Bedford, Bellingham, Belmont, Boxborough, Boxford, Braintree, Burlington, Canton, Danvers, Dedham, Dover, Dunstable, Easton, Framingham, Franklin, Georgetown, Grafton, Groton, Hamilton, Hanover, Hingham, Holliston, Hopkinton, Hudson, Hull, Ipswich, Kingston, Lakeville, Lawrence, Leominster, Lexington, Lincoln, Littleton, Lynn, Lynnfield, Malden, Mansfield, Marion, Marlborough, Marblehead, Marshfield, Mattapoisett, Maynard, Medfield, Medway, Melrose, Mendon, Methuen, Middleborough, Middleton, Millbury, Nahant, Natick, Needham, Newton, Norfolk, North Andover, North Reading, Northborough, Norwood, Norwell, Plymouth, Reading, Rochester, Rockland, Rowley, Sherborn, Southborough, Stoneham, Stoughton, Stow, Sudbury, Sutton, Swampscott, Taunton, Tewksbury, Topsfield, Tyngsborough, Wakefield, Walpole, Waltham, Wareham, Wayland, Wellesley, Wenham, West Newbury, Westborough, Weston, Westwood, Wilmington, Winchester, Wrentham and Woburn, and will soon be available in Billerica, Chelmsford, Fitchburg, Milford and North Attleborough.)

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) , headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving more than 89 million customers nationwide. Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America's most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers innovative, seamless business solutions to customers around the world. A Dow 30 company, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of more than 230,000 and last year generated consolidated revenues of more than $97 billion. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

VERIZON'S ONLINE NEWS CENTER: Verizon news releases, executive speeches and biographies, media contacts, high quality video and images, and other information are available at Verizon's News Center on the World Wide Web at www.verizon.com/news. To receive news releases by e-mail, visit the News Center and register for customized automatic delivery of Verizon news releases.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Source: Verizon

CONTACT: Media, Ellen Cummings, +1-508-624-2219,
ellen.m.cummings@verizon.com, or Phil Santoro, +1-617-743-4760,
philip.g.santoro@verizon.com, both of Verizon

Web Site: http://www.verizon.com/

Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/094251.html

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Profile: International Entertainment