Verizon has filed plans with the New York City Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications (DoITT) to offer its FiOS TV service throughout all five boroughs of the city. The plan would extend the fiber optic service to approximately 3.1 million households over a 6 year period. Verizon submitted the plan in response to a Solicitation DoITT issued on April 11. The solicitation seeks “proposals for franchises for the provision of cable television services to be made available throughout the City.” Currently, only two legacy cable TV companies operate in separate and distinct parts of the city.
Verizon said if its proposal is accepted and all approvals are achieved in a timely fashion, it would begin offering service to NYC residents later this year.
Key aspects of the citywide plan include:
- Verizon will deploy its fiber-optic network throughout the entire City by midyear 2014.
- Verizon will make available FiOS TV service to requesting customers in all five boroughs within a six-year time frame as Verizon’s wire centers are upgraded to being video-capable. If Verizon’s proposal is approved, hundreds of thousands of New York City residents will have access to FiOS TV this year;
- FiOS TV will include an all digital channel line-up of more than 400 channels and 150 HD channels by year-end, and a growing library of more than 10,000 video-on-demand selections;
- Verizon will provide a fiber-optic institutional network (known as an INET), primarily to support the City’s public safety needs;
- Verizon agrees to pay franchise fees equivalent to five percent of gross revenues on cable TV service, as do other cable TV operators in the City;
- Verizon has agreed to appropriate customer service provisions.
Verizon noted that it began constructing its fiber network in the City in late 2004 and has installed FiOS in hundreds of MDU buildings throughout the City. http://www.verizon.com