Verizon IPTV Rollout Running Into Local Roadblocks (sub. req.)

Verizon Communications is getting a first-hand look at the kind of details cable companies have been grappling with for decades when it comes to local franchise agreements. The Journal has some of the nitty-gritty requests/demands: wildflower seeds and Christmas video hookups in New York state; fiber optic to traffic lights in Virginia; discounts for senior citizens; video cameras for math tutoring in Tampa. You get the drift. While SBC banks on gaining statewide approvals, fiber-optic-centric Verizon wants local okays. The telecom has a lot riding on video and the local authorities know it. Lynbrook, N.Y., Deputy Mayor Thomas Miccio: “They know if they don’t get this process done they’re going to be in big, big trouble, so we feel we’re in a very good position. We’re going to get what we think our residents need.”

Verizon earnings came out Thursday. No details on FiOS, which the company says is on track; one estimate suggests the service is in a few hundred thousand homes.

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