Verizon Cracks 700,000 Subscriber Mark for FiOS
Telco Boosts Video Subscribers by 39% in the Third Quarter, Up from 515,000 in June
By Todd Spangler -- Multichannel News, 10/29/2007 5:24:00 AM
Verizon Communications increased the number of FiOS TV subscribers 39% in the third quarter, adding 202,000 net new customers to stand at 717,000 total at the end of September.
The telco, which announced the figures as part of its earnings Monday, said it now has more than 1.5 million total video customers, including those who subscribe to DirecTV’s satellite service. Verizon reported having 515,000 FiOS TV subs at the end of June.
FiOS TV was available for sale to 4.7 million households by the end of the quarter, Verizon said, giving the service an average penetration rate of 15.2% across markets.
Verizon said it added a net of 285,000 new broadband connections – including both digital subscriber line and FiOS Internet connections – for a total of 8.0 million subscribers at the end of the quarter. The company added a net of 229,000 FiOS Internet connections in the quarter, for a total of 1.3 million. FiOS Internet was available to 6.5 million premises in parts of 16 states by the end of the quarter.
The FiOS fiber-to-the-home network passed 8.5 million premises by the end of the quarter. Verizon said earnings-per-share dilution from FiOS deployment and customer-acquisition costs was 9 cents per share.
A lawsuit filed against Verizon earlier this month by a small marketing firm questioned the company’s subscriber counts for FiOS TV. The firm, Digital Art Services, alleged the telco overstated the number of FiOS TV subscribers in the New York area by counting “pending” customers who have not actually been hooked up with service yet.
Verizon, responding to the lawsuit, said the TV subscriber numbers it provides Wall Street reflect actual, billable subscriber accounts and do not include pending orders. The company called the Digital Art Services lawsuit "nothing more than a misguided effort to use litigation tactics to obtain leverage" in a commercial dispute.
