East Rockaway, N.Y., Consumers One Step Closer to Real Choice for Cable TV

EAST ROCKAWAY, N.Y. - Residents of this Long Island village are one step closer to choice for their cable television services, thanks to the Village Board of Trustees' vote last night (Sept. 18) to award a video franchise to Verizon for its FiOS TV service.

East Rockaway is the eighth Long Island community - and the 13th in the state - to grant Verizon a cable franchise, following the communities of Massapequa Park, Cedarhurst, Laurel Hollow, Lynbrook, Mineola, the Town of Hempstead and the Town of Oyster Bay.  In Rockland County, Verizon has been granted cable franchises by Nyack, South Nyack, Upper Nyack, Grandview-on-Hudson and Clarkstown.  While East Rockaway falls within the Town of Hempstead, it is an incorporated village.  Each incorporated village must conduct its own negotiations with Verizon for a video franchise.

East Rockaway joins the growing list of New York communities that are paving the way for competition and choice in the television market.  As with all local franchise approvals in New York, the agreement between East Rockaway and Verizon is subject to review by the New York State Public Service Commission.

"This is great news for the residents of East Rockaway, who now have more choice for their video entertainment," said Monica Azare, Verizon senior vice president for New York and Connecticut.  "Choice and competition drives innovation, value and service quality, and we will continue to compete for Long Island consumers' communications, broadband and video business with our FiOS services.

"We look forward to similarly successful negotiations with other towns and villages throughout New York state," said Azare.

Verizon, which launched FiOS TV last September in Keller, Texas, currently offers the service in parts of California, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Texas and Virginia.  The company now has video franchises covering approximately 3 million households in nine states and more than 100 franchise areas.  As the fiber network is fully deployed in franchise areas, Verizon will provide consumers with the opportunity to choose FiOS TV.

Verizon's FiOS TV service is designed to be a formidable competitor to cable and satellite, offering a broad collection of all-digital programming, more than 20 high-definition channels, video on demand and more.  It is delivered over Verizon's fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) network, which has industry-leading quality and reliability.  Verizon is the first company to offer such a communications network, connecting homes and businesses directly to fiber optics on a widespread scale.

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 allows the company to offer consumers and businesses high-speed FiOS Internet service at download speeds of up to 50 Mbps (megabits per second) and upload speeds of up to 10 Mbps.*  FiOS Internet Service is currently available in many New York communities.

* NOTE: actual (throughput) speeds will vary.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), a Dow 30 company, 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 55 million customers nationwide.  Verizon Business operates one of the most expansive wholly-owned global IP networks.  Verizon Telecom is deploying the nation's most advanced fiber-optic network to deliver the benefits of converged communications, information and entertainment services to customers.  Based in New York, Verizon has a diverse workforce of more than 252,000 and generates annual consolidated operating revenues of approximately $90 billion.  For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

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