Verizon Makes New York Inroads
By Glen Dickson -- Broadcasting & Cable, 5/23/2007 1:13:00 PM
Verizon has gotten the green light for its fiber-based TV service, FiOS TV, in two more New York communities.
The Westchester County town of Mount Pleasant and the Long Island village of Sands Point have both approved video franchises for Verizon, which is seeking to compete with incumbent cable operators Cablevision and Comcast in various parts of New York and New Jersey.
"This is great news for residents of Mount Pleasant and Sands Point, who now will have a new choice for their video entertainment," said Monica Azare, Verizon senior vice president for New York and Connecticut, in a statement.
The agreements approved for Verizon by Mount Pleasant and Sands Point are subject to review by the New York State Public Service Commission.
Verizon has already been granted video franchises in the Westchester County communities of North Castle, White Plains, Rye Brook, Irvington, Ardsley, Dobbs Ferry, Tarrytown, Eastchester, Mount Kisco, Elmsford, Port Chester, Tuckahoe and the Town of Greenburgh. Verizon also has video franchises in the Rockland County communities of Chestnut Ridge, Airmont, Piermont, Orangetown, Clarkstown, Nyack, South Nyack, Upper Nyack, Grandview-on-Hudson, West Haverstraw and the Town of Haverstraw; and on Long Island in the villages of Massapequa Park, Cedarhurst, Laurel Hollow, Lynbrook, Mineola, East Rockaway, Farmingdale, Valley Stream, Freeport, Williston Park, New Hyde Park and Bayville, and in the towns of North Hempstead, Huntington, Smithtown, Hempstead and Oyster Bay.
