Verizon Eager To FiOS-ize New York City
Franchise and Concession Review Committee Expected to Vote May 27
By Todd Spangler -- Multichannel News, 5/22/2008 4:30:00 AM
Verizon Communications told New York City’s Franchise and Concession Review Committee (FCRC) on May 20 that it is “ready, committed and eager” to deploy its FiOS network in all five boroughs of the city, passing around 3.1 million households.
The FCRC hearing followed an agreement between Verizon and the city’s Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications on the terms of a citywide video franchise. A vote by the FCRC is expected to be held May 27; if the committee and the city approve Verizon's proposal, it will be submitted to the New York Public Service Commission for review.
"We have the people, knowledge, resources and dedication to service to do the job and build our FiOS fiber-optic system in every New York City neighborhood," Thomas Dunne, Verizon vice president for government affairs in New York, said in testimony submitted to the FCRC.
"We are eager to bring cable TV competition to the entire city. We know that residents here have but one choice for a wireline cable provider -- the cable monopoly that happened to be granted a franchise to operate in their neighborhood," Dunne added.
Verizon is hoping to begin offering service in the Big Apple before the end of the year, if all approvals are cleared.
In the first quarter of 2008, Verizon across all markets added 263,000 net new FiOS TV customers and 262,000 net new FiOS Internet customers, for a total of 1.2 million FiOS TV customers and 1.8 million FiOS Internet customers as of the end of March.
