Verizon Vows 1,000 HD VOD Titles/Month by Yearend

Hoping to keep pace in the video-on-demand race with entrenched cablecos, Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) today announced it has added CSPAN's political coverage to its FiOS TV VoD library, as well as new HD content from other sources.

By yearend, Verizon says it plans to offer 1,000 HD VOD titles each month. Verizon has added new HD content from several providers to the FiOS TV VOD library, including Big Ten Network, Flow TV, Octane TV and Ripe TV. The FiOS TV VOD library, which the telco now claims offers more than 11,000 titles each month, 70 percent of which are free, includes an increasing number of HD titles.

These new VOD titles give customers a front seat to all of the action, from this year's presidential election to sports to movies,” said Terry Denson, vice president, FiOS TV content and programming, in prepared comments. “And the best part of all is that with video-on-demand from FiOS TV, you can watch what you want, when you want."

The news comes on the heels of Comcast Corp.’s (CMCSA) launch of presidential debates – and related political programming – on its VoD system for those who miss the live events or wish to re-view the proceedings.

FiOS customers looking to catch up on the latest coverage of the presidential race now have access through CSPAN On Demand to speeches and events from both Democratic and Republican conventions as well as interviews with politicians. This VOD listing will be made available through the election, keeping FiOS TV customers informed and up-to-date.

FiOS TV customers also will see a number of new HD VOD listings from Ripe TV, which targets men; Flow TV, which targets hip-hop fans; and Octane TV, featuring coverage of the automobile culture, including industry events, profiles, street racing, motocross, auto stunts and more.

For college football and basketball fans, Verizon has added on-demand content in both standard-definition (SD) and HD from the Big Ten Network. Verizon also offers the Big Ten Network as part of its regular channel lineup, in both SD and HD, in several markets and will continue rolling out the network in all other FiOS TV markets during the next month.

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