Verizon has filed an application with the New York City Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications (DoITT) to offer its fiber-optic-based FiOS TV service throughout the city.
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, two legacy cable TV companies operate in separate parts of the city.
Verizon's proposal is being evaluated by the city, and then forwarded to the city's Franchise and Concession Review Committee for a public hearing and consideration. If the committee and the city approve Verizon's proposal, it will be submitted to the New York Public Service Commission for confirmation, as are all cable franchises. If all approvals are achieved in a timely fashion, Verizon would begin offering service to the city’s residents later this year.
This 12-year proposed agreement is unprecedented in scope and is designed to serve the needs of about 3.1 million households that will have access to FiOS TV, including households in multiple dwelling units.
Aspects of the plan include:
- Verizon building its fiber-optic network throughout the entire city by midyear 2014;
- Making available FiOS TV service to requesting customers in all five boroughs within a six-year time frame;
- 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 providing a fiber-optic institutional network (known as an INET), primarily to support the city's public safety needs;
- Verizon agreeing to pay franchise fees equivalent to five percent of gross revenues on cable TV service, as do other cable TV operators in the city.
