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WILMINGTON, Del. - Wilmington residents and businesses are nearer to having more choice for their TV service as Verizon filed a video franchise application Thursday (Nov. 20) that would authorize the company to offer its fiber-optic-based FiOS TV in the city.
The Wilmington Cable, Video and Telecommunications Commission, City Council Finance Committee and full Council now will consider Verizon's application for a 10-year franchise and subsequently vote on whether to approve it.
The application follows several months of discussions between Verizon and city representatives. Based in part on those discussions, Verizon has committed to make FiOS TV available throughout Wilmington within five years of the date the service is first offered in the city.
The franchise application also provides the city with up to three educational and governmental access channels for use by the city; payment of franchise fees equivalent to 5 percent of gross revenues on cable TV service; financial support for the city's educational and governmental channels and institutional network; an extensive and appropriate set of customer service provisions; and a service center in the city where customers can obtain assistance with their FiOS TV equipment needs.
"Verizon is eager to offer Wilmington residents something they haven't previously had - a superior choice for their cable TV information and entertainment," said William R. Allan, president of Verizon Delaware. "FiOS TV has superior picture quality and more high-definition channels than the competition, all delivered over the nation's most advanced, all-fiber-optic network by a name people can trust - Verizon.
"We're looking forward to our first FiOS TV sales in Wilmington, and we encourage the city to approve this application expeditiously," said Allan.
As part of the franchise application, Verizon will offer service to a significant number of Wilmington subscribers within two years of the agreement's effective date, and to all residential areas within five years of the date FiOS TV is available for sale in the city.
The company currently offers FiOS Internet service in some parts of Wilmington, with more locations being added every week. Residents in these areas will be among the first to choose FiOS TV.
More information about Verizon and FiOS TV is available at www.verizon.com/de.
