TV Choice and Competition Near for Residents of the Village of Fishkill, N.Y.

NEW YORK, Aug. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Residents of the Dutchess County Village of Fishkill are a major step closer to having a real choice for their cable television service, thanks to a newly approved agreement authorizing Verizon to offer its FiOS TV service, delivered over the most advanced fiber-optic network straight to customers' homes.

In a unanimous vote, the Fishkill Village Board granted a video franchise to Verizon Monday night (Aug. 25), paving the way for video choice in this community.

The new franchise brings to 128 the total number of New York municipalities that have approved video franchises for Verizon.

"This is great news for residents of the Village of Fishkill, who now will have a new choice for their video entertainment," said Andres Irlando, Verizon senior vice president for New York and Connecticut.

"Consumers in the Village of Fishkill will be able to choose their cable provider as easily as they choose their phone company. Competition like this drives innovation and value and puts the consumer in control, and we will continue to compete aggressively for business in this village," he said.

As with all local franchise approvals in New York, the agreement between Verizon and the Village of Fishkill is subject to review by the New York State Public Service Commission.

Verizon's FiOS TV is a formidable competitor to cable and satellite, offering a broad collection of all-digital programming, up to 100 high- definition (HD) channels in the New York market and access to more than 11,000 video-on-demand (VOD) titles, 70 percent of which are free. The VOD library also includes an increasing number of HD titles, and Verizon plans to have 1,000 HD VOD titles per month by year-end.

Verizon's fiber network 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 delivers Internet download speeds of up to 50 Mbps (megabits per second) and upload speeds of up to 20 Mbps, as well as high-quality voice service.*

The Village of Fishkill joins a growing list of New York communities that are paving the way for competition and choice in the television market. In addition to the Village of Fishkill, Verizon has been granted video franchises in the following municipalities:

City of New York

Long Island

Amityville, Massapequa Park, Cedarhurst, Laurel Hollow, Lynbrook, Mineola, East Hills, East Rockaway, Farmingdale, Valley Stream, Freeport, Williston Park, New Hyde Park, Sands Point, Bayville, Old Field, Floral Park, South Floral Park, Garden City, Nissequogue, Northport, Poquott, East Williston, Head of the Harbor, Mill Neck, Stewart Manor, Centre Island, Lawrence, Malverne, Manorhaven, Huntington Bay, The Branch, Oyster Bay Cove, Flower Hill, Great Neck, Great Neck Estates, Great Neck Plaza, Kensington, Kings Point, Lake Success, Munsey Park, North Hills, Plandome, Plandome Heights, Plandome Manor, Rockville Centre, Roslyn, Roslyn Estates, Roslyn Harbor, Russell Gardens, Saddle Rock, Thomaston, Bellerose, Lloyd Harbor and Baxter Estates; and the towns of North Hempstead, Huntington, Smithtown, Hempstead, Oyster Bay, Islip and Babylon.

Westchester County

Ardsley, Dobbs Ferry, Tarrytown, Irvington, Greenburgh, Eastchester, Mount Kisco, Elmsford, Port Chester, Tuckahoe, White Plains, Rye Brook, North Castle, Mount Vernon, Mount Pleasant, Yonkers, Scarsdale, Bronxville, New Rochelle, Cortlandt, Peekskill, Buchanan, Rye, Larchmont, the Village of Mamaroneck, the Town of Mamaroneck, New Castle, Pelham Manor, Sleepy Hollow, Briarcliff Manor, the Town of Ossining and the Village of Ossining.

Rockland County

Nyack, South Nyack, Upper Nyack, Grandview-on-Hudson, Clarkstown, Orangetown, Piermont, Airmont, the Town of Haverstraw, West Haverstraw, Chestnut Ridge, Ramapo, Spring Valley, Stony Point, the Village of Haverstraw, Suffern, Hillburn, Wesley Hills and Montebello.

    Dutchess County
    Wappinger and Wappingers Falls

    Orange County
    Town of Newburgh and City of Newburgh

Erie County

Amherst, Blasdell, Village of Hamburg, Town of Hamburg, West Seneca, Tonawanda, Village of Orchard Park and Town of Orchard Park.

    Putnam County
    Kent

    * NOTE: actual (throughput) speeds will vary.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ), headquartered in New York, is a leader in delivering broadband and other wireline and wireless communication innovations to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving nearly 69 million customers nationwide. Verizon's Wireline operations include Verizon Business, which delivers innovative and seamless business solutions to customers around the world, and Verizon Telecom, which brings customers the benefits of converged communications, information and entertainment services over the nation's most advanced fiber-optic network. A Dow 30 company, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of more than 228,600 and last year generated consolidated operating revenues of $93.5 billion. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

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SOURCE Verizon