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Verizon's deal with county could start cable TV war(Tampa Tribune (FL) (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Jan. 26--TAMPA -- More than 700,000 Hillsborough County residents may soon have a new choice for cable television service. On Wednesday, Verizon Communications Inc. and county officials signed an agreement that would allow the communications company to start selling digital cable television service across the county. County commissioners are expected to vote on the deal at a scheduled meeting Wednesday. If approved, the deal likely would trigger a price war between Verizon and the area's dominant cable TV company, Bright House Networks. "We view this clearly as a positive development and are pleased to be in this position," Verizon spokesman Bob Elek said. He declined further comment until the commissioners' vote. The Tampa Bay area is among a handful of communities nationwide that Verizon has selected to launch its cable TV service. Ultimately the company hopes to sell consumers on a bundle of three services: cable TV, high-speed Internet and phone -- called a "triple-play" in the telecommunications industry. Prices for cable service vary depending on which channels customers choose and what combinations of service they order: phone, Internet, cable or all. Different cable TV companies package channels differently. Verizon said its main package of digital cable service will include 180 channels of television and music for $39.95 per month. A similar Bright House Network's digital cable package of 175 television and music channels is $58.45 per month. Verizon and the county have been in discussions about Verizon's interest in getting clearance to sell cable TV in the county for more than a year. The deal is immensely important to Verizon. The company is spending hundreds of millions of dollars a year to string high-speed fiber-optic data lines across the area -- designed to provide telephone, high-speed Internet and video services. Verizon needs local government permission to sell the video portion of the triple play package. Wednesday's deal applies to residents in the county not represented by Tampa, Temple Terrace or Plant City. Temple Terrace has signed an agreement with Verizon to sell television service there. Tampa and Plant City are in negotiations over a deal. The deal, if approved, would generate new revenue for the county government. As structured now, Verizon would get a two-year waiver on any fees but then would pay the county 47 cents a month for every subscriber, potentially generating about $1 million per year if Verizon were to sign up as many customers as Bright House has in unincorporated areas of the county -- about 175,000. That money would be earmarked for maintaining county data networks, public buildings and schools, and funding for public, education and government-access channels. Verizon expects to deploy digital TV service in stages as it installs equipment in company operation centers. The county has requested that over time, Verizon provide service to any resident in all but the most sparsely populated areas. One significant item left open in the deal is the number of public, education and government, or PEG, channels Verizon would provide the county in its basic cable package. PEG channels proved a tricky aspect during negotiations. The county asked Verizon to provide five PEG channels. The agreement signed Wednesday calls for county commissioners to decide how many PEG channels Verizon must carry. |