Verizon FiOS Expands Channel Lineup

NEW YORK, June 5: Verizon
FiOS TV will add more than 60 new channels to its lineup this summer, including
Setanta Sports, with plans to offer up to 150 HD networks by the end of the
year.

The new channels cover
high-definition, sports and multicultural content. Verizon will roll out the
new content region by region to areas where FiOS TV is available, beginning in
early July. The new channels will be activated in FiOS systems across the
country over the following few months. Included in the new fare will be more
than 25 HD channels, bringing the total number of HD networks to between 52 and
65, depending on the customer's location.

Verizon FiOS TV customers
will be able to access a number of channels in HD, including Lifetime, Animal
Planet, TLC, Science Channel and Smithsonian Channel. Those 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 see a total of five new HD
channels from Starz and Showtime.

There will be more sports
programming on the FiOS TV lineup as well, including Setanta Sports, a 24/7
network dedicated to international soccer and rugby. It offers more than 1,000
live events, including British, European and international soccer, as well as
rugby and other sports programming. Soccer coverage includes the Barclays
Premier League and UEFA Champions League. Verizon will be the only cable
provider to make Setanta available at the time of launch. Setanta Sports will
soon be available to FiOS TV customers for $14.99 per month.

Verizon also plans to
offer a number of sports channels in HD, including Outdoor Channel, which
provides programming that promotes traditional outdoor activities like fishing,
hunting and shooting sports.

Furthermore, Verizon will
add approximately 15 multicultural channels to the FiOS TV roster, including
channels for Arabic, Portuguese and Russian audiences, among others. Much of
the multicultural content comes from WorldTV, a division of the 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).

Verizon's FiOS TV service
offers 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. FiOS TV is currently available to more than 6.5 million homes in
13 states.

"The popularity of
HD, sports and multicultural content continues to grow, and we're committed to
leading the industry in the scope and quality of our programming
offerings," said Terry Denson, the VP of FiOS TV content and programming.
"We are aggressively acquiring high-quality programming in both standard
and high definition that appeals to a broad array of viewers. Because we
deliver FiOS TV over the nation's most advanced fiber-optic network straight to
customers’ homes, the quality of our picture and sound is unmatched, giving
customers the best possible TV viewing experience."

—By Irene Lew