GEORGETOWN, Mass. and LITTLETON, Mass., Dec. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- The Board of Selectmen in Georgetown and Littleton unanimously granted cable franchises to Verizon Monday (Dec. 11), paving the way for video choice for nearly 6,000 more Massachusetts households.
The board's unanimous vote brings to 35 the total number of Massachusetts communities where Verizon's FiOS TV is or will soon be available.
"We are thrilled to be able to bring FiOS TV to residents in Georgetown and Littleton," said Donna Cupelo, Verizon region president for Massachusetts and Rhode Island. "Since the launch of FiOS TV in Massachusetts earlier this year, we are continuing our efforts to meet the consumer demand for cable-TV choice."
FiOS TV is the company's new fiber-optic television service, delivered over the only all-digital, fiber network that is being made available, on a mass scale, to millions of individual homes and businesses. It offers a better-quality picture, more high-definition and on-demand programs, and more reliable service at competitive prices.
The company currently offers FiOS TV to more than 177,000 Massachusetts households. The service is available in Acton, Andover, Belmont, Boxborough, Boxford, Burlington, Dedham, Hamilton, Hopkinton, Ipswich, Lincoln, Lexington, Lynn, Lynnfield, Marlborough, Nahant, Needham, North Reading, Reading, Stoneham, Swampscott, Tewksbury, Topsfield, Tyngsborough, Wakefield, Wenham, Wellesley, West Newbury, Winchester and Woburn, as well as other locations in New York, California, Texas, Florida, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia. The company also has TV franchises in the Massachusetts communities of Marion, Mattapoisett and Rochester.
"As a result of these new franchises, Georgetown and Littleton consumers will be able to choose their cable provider as easily as they choose their phone company," said Cupelo. "Competition drives innovation, value and service quality, and it puts the consumer in control. We are hopeful the city of Newton and the towns of Franklin and Natick will follow suit soon."
Verizon is currently in negotiations with some 30 other communities in Massachusetts to obtain additional franchises. For more information on the Verizon franchise process in the state, log onto http://www.verizon.com/ma .
Verizon research indicates 87 percent of Massachusetts residents favor more competition and choice for video services. Independent studies have shown that competition in the video market brings enormous benefits to consumers in the form of reduced prices, better packages and improved service.
The Georgetown and Littleton franchise agreements contain provisions for the network's future growth; financial support and capacity for educational and government access channels; cable service to government buildings; and other important benefits to the town, including insurance, indemnification and enforcement protections.
"Verizon will compete aggressively for subscribers in Georgetown and Littleton with our FiOS services, which are fueled by our lightning-fast fiber-optic network," Cupelo said.
FiOS TV offers a broad collection of all-digital programming, two dozen 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. Only Verizon's FTTP network has earned the certification of the independent Fiber to the Home Council for providing fiber all the way to customers' homes and businesses.
Fiber 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 30 Mbps (megabits per second) and upload speeds up to 5 Mbps.*
* NOTE: actual (throughput) speeds will vary.
Verizon Communications Inc. , a New York-based 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 57 million customers nationwide. Verizon's Wireline operations include Verizon Business, which operates one of the most expansive wholly-owned global IP networks, and Verizon Telecom, which is deploying the nation's most advanced fiber-optic network to deliver the benefits of converged communications, information and entertainment services to customers. For more information, visit http://www.verizon.com/ .
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