TV Viewers in Rockland County Village of Upper Nyack Get Competition for Cable

TV Viewers in Rockland County Village of Upper Nyack Get Competition for Cable

Agreement Opens the Door to Improved Cable Competition, Consumer Choice and Value

NEW YORK, March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Television viewers in Upper Nyack, NY will soon have a great new choice for subscription television, following the Village Board of Trustees' vote Thursday night (March 16) to award a video franchise to Verizon for its FiOS TV product. FiOS TV is Verizon's state-of- the-art, all-digital fiber optic television service that beats cable on picture quality, program choice, usability and value. It is delivered via the company's new, fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) network.

Customers in Upper Nyack join several other Rockland County and Long Island communities as they pave the way for improved competition in the cable television market. The Villages of Nyack and South Nyack voted last November to award video franchises to Verizon, and earlier this week residents in those two towns began ordering the company's FiOS TV service. The Long Island community of Massapequa Park voted Sept. 26, 2005, to grant Verizon the first franchise in the state. As with all local franchise approvals in New York, the approval by Upper Nyack is subject to review by the New York Public Service Commission.

Verizon has also obtained video franchises for communities in California, Virginia, Florida, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Maryland, as well as state- issued franchises in Texas, Virginia and Indiana.

"This is great news for the residents of Upper Nyack, who will have more choice for their video entertainment," said Monica Azare, Verizon senior vice president for New York and Connecticut. "Verizon commends the village trustees, Mayor Michael Esmay and Village Attorney Robert P. Lewis for their help throughout this process. They recognize and support the technological advantage and competitive benefits, as well as the distinctive edge in economic development and quality of life that fiber will bring to Upper Nyack.

"We look forward to similarly successful negotiations with other municipalities in Rockland County and elsewhere in the state," said Azare.

The village trustees' decision gives Verizon the authority to offer FiOS TV to the more than 700 households in Upper Nyack. Many Verizon customers here are already enjoying FiOS Internet Service, which delivers blazing-fast download speeds ranging from 5 Mbps to up to 30 Mbps (megabits per second).*

Verizon launched FiOS TV Sept. 22, 2005, in Keller, Texas, unveiling a broad collection of all-digital programming with more than 390 total channels and more on the way. Availability plans for FiOS TV in Upper Nyack will be announced soon.

Under the franchise agreement, which covers 15 years, Verizon will provide service to the entire village once the company's fiber network is completed. In addition, the agreement contains provisions for the network's future growth; financial support and capacity for public and governmental access channels; and other important provisions.

FiOS TV is a state-of-the-art video service designed to be a formidable competitor with cable and satellite. It is delivered over Verizon's FTTP network, which has industry-leading quality and reliability. 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. Verizon's network design includes backup facilities not common to traditional cable systems, such as duplicate "head ends" where the TV service receives national programming.

The Verizon FTTP network, the largest of its kind in the country, is currently under construction in more than half of the states where the company offers landline communications services, including more than 200 New York communities.

FiOS TV will deliver a wide range of programming designed to meet the entertainment and information needs of the mid-Hudson region's diverse population. Customers will be able to buy FiOS TV as a stand-alone service or packaged with voice and FiOS Internet Service. Verizon has announced video content agreements with major and independent network groups, including NBC Universal Cable, The Walt Disney Company, MTV Networks, BET, Starz Entertainment Group, Showtime Networks, Turner Broadcasting System, A&E Television Networks, TV One, Discovery Networks, SiTV and NFL Network.

* NOTE: Actual (throughput) speeds will vary

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), a Dow 30 company, is a leader in delivering broadband and other communication innovations to wireline and wireless customers. Verizon operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving 51.3 million customers nationwide; one of the most expansive wholly-owned global IP networks; and one of the nation's premier wireline networks, serving home, business and wholesale customers. Based in New York, Verizon has a diverse workforce of approximately 250,000 and generates annual consolidated operating revenues of approximately $90 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.

Source: Verizon

CONTACT: Heather Wilner of Verizon, +1-917-596-7961,
heather.b.wilner@verizon.com

Web site: http://www.verizon.com/
http://www.verizon.com/news

Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/618232.html

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