Verizon Adds 22 New Channels to FiOS TV Lineup - Including 15 in HD - for Fort Wayne, Ind., Customers

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - Verizon FiOS TV is now even better for customers here as the company has launched 22 new channels, including 15 additional high-definition (HD) channels.  FiOS TV customers in Fort Wayne now have more than 440 HD choices available at any time, with a total of 41 HD channels and more than 400 HD video-on-demand (VOD) titles offered each month.

The first in a series of channel additions coming this year, new content includes sports favorites like the Big Ten Network and new HD channels like CNBC, Bravo and USA.  The next series of content additions will include more HD channels, including CNN, TBS, Lifetime, three new Starz channels and two new Showtime channels, as well as 16 new multicultural channels.

[Note: A list of all the new channels can be found below.]

Verizon will continue expanding its FiOS TV channel lineup this year, with a major focus on HD content.  By year-end, Verizon will offer all available major HD programming.

"High-definition and sports content are among the most popular TV programming, and we're bringing the best of both to FiOS TV," said Terry Denson, vice president - FiOS TV content and programming.  "The addition of new HD and sports channels, along with the new multicultural content and more, is part of our commitment to lead the industry in the scope and quality of our programming."

Fort Wayne customers are the first to receive the new FiOS TV channel lineup.  During the next few months, Verizon will roll out the new content, region by region, in other areas where FiOS TV is available.

Verizon Leads the Way With 15 New HD Channels, More to Come in July

FiOS TV customers in the Fort Wayne area will now have a total of 41 HD channels.  As Verizon previously announced, customers will get to see some of their favorite channels in HD, including Animal Planet, TLC, Science Channel and Smithsonian Channel.  Other new HD programming that FiOS TV customers in Fort Wayne now receive includes CNBC, Bravo, USA, Cinemax, HBO, History Channel, Weather Channel and SCI FI.

Those customers who subscribe to FiOS TV's Movie Package - which already includes more than 40 channels from Showtime, Starz, The Movie Channel, Encore, Sundance Channel and IFC, as well as access to hundreds of free movies on VOD - will soon have access to five new HD channels from Starz and Showtime: Starz Edge, Starz Comedy, Starz Kids and Family, Showtime and Showtime 2.

Big Ten Network and More Sports Content

For sports fans, Verizon is launching three new HD sports channels.  Verizon has always placed a high priority on providing all major sports programming and offering as much as possible in HD.

The company has now added top college basketball and football action with the Big Ten Network, which will be available in both standard- and high-definition.  In addition, Verizon has launched two other new HD sports channels - Versus/Golf Channel, which features live events and original programming from Versus as well as PGA Tour and additional golf coverage; and the Outdoor Channel 2, which provides programming that promotes traditional outdoor activities like fishing, hunting and shooting sports.

As previously announced, Verizon will also soon offer Setanta Sports, a premium channel dedicated to bringing European and International soccer and rugby to U.S.-based fans.  When the channel launches in July, no other cable provider will offer Setanta.

New Multicultural Content for Diverse Audiences

Verizon has been focused on bringing a range of diverse, multicultural content to its FiOS TV customers.  Within the next month, Verizon will begin offering Fort Wayne customers 16 new multicultural channels, including leading channels for Arabic, Portuguese and Russian audiences, among others.  These new channels continue to make FiOS TV an outlet for emerging and independent networks to showcase their diverse programming.

Much of the multicultural content comes from WorldTV, a division of content management and delivery company GlobeCast, which previously signed a distribution deal with Verizon for top-tier international channels.  The new GlobeCast WorldTV international television channels include MBT (Arabic), RTPI (Portuguese) and RTR Planeta (Russian).  In addition to the WorldTV content, Verizon will offer South Asian channel ZEE TV and Filipino channel GMA Pinoy TV.  Verizon also recently added Spanish language network Univision to the Fort Wayne lineup.

Verizon's FiOS TV service offers a broad collection of all-digital programming, with more than 400 total channels and 10,000 video-on-demand titles, 70 percent of which are free.  The VOD library also includes an increasing number of HD titles, with 1,000 HD VOD titles per month by the end of the year.  FiOS TV is currently available to more than 6.5 million homes in 13 states.  In the little more than two years since the service first launched, the company has signed up more than 1.2 million FiOS TV customers who enjoy hundreds of digital video and music channels, high-definition linear and on-demand programming, the nation's largest collection of video-on-demand content, a robust interactive media guide, and other advanced features.  For more information on FiOS TV, visit www.verizon.com/fiostv.  Consumers can also call their local Verizon sales office or 888-438-3467.

Verizon is adding the following new channels to the FiOS TV lineup in Fort Wayne:

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 more than 67 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 employed a diverse workforce of approximately 232,000 as of the end of the first quarter 2008 and last year generated consolidated operating revenues of $93.5 billion.  For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

####