Shoppers Can Test-Drive Verizon's All-Fiber FiOS TV and Internet Services at New Hunt Valley, Md., Store

It's Wall-to-Wall FiOS Services; More Services for Customers, More Fun for Shoppers Looking to Get a Jump on the Holidays

• Press Release
• Source: Verizon
• On 9:26 am EST, Thursday November 5, 2009

HUNT VALLEY, Md., Nov. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Attention Baltimore County residents looking to beat the holiday rush and supercharge their Internet and TV services: You now can experience first-hand the superior quality and innovative features of Verizon's all-fiber-optic FiOS services at the company's new Hunt Valley store.

Located in the Hunt Valley Towne Center at 118 Shawan Road, the store showcases Verizon's FiOS TV and FiOS Internet services.

Inside the store, Verizon has created a home-theater setting, where shoppers can relax in plush chairs and see for themselves what all the excitement is about as they experience FiOS TV on both standard- and high-definition TVs. Or, shoppers can experience the speed and vast capabilities of FiOS Internet service. Verizon representatives are on hand to demonstrate FiOS, answer questions and help shoppers place orders for new services. Customers also can come by to pick up or return FiOS TV set-top boxes, pay their Verizon bill or consult with representatives.

The store is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and on Sundays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

"Our new store allows us to get closer to our customers and the residents of the communities we serve," said Andrea Custis, Verizon's vice president of sales for the Potomac region. "Our current customers will appreciate the convenience of a nearby location where they can conduct business, and potential customers will have an easy and fun way to see for themselves how different and exciting FiOS is."

In Maryland, Verizon's FiOS TV and FiOS Internet services are available to dozens of communities in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Charles, Harford, Howard, Montgomery and Prince George's counties, including Aberdeen, Annapolis, Bel Air, LaPlata and Rockville.

FiOS TV offers consumers a broad range of programming choices and superior picture quality from the only TV service delivered over the nation's most advanced all-fiber network directly connecting to millions of individual homes and businesses.

Verizon's FiOS TV service recently was selected as the top-ranked residential television service provider in the Northeast region by J.D. Power for 2009 for the second year in a row.

Verizon's all-fiber network also delivers Internet download speeds of up to 50 Mbps* (megabits per second) and upload speeds of up to 20 Mbps, as well as high-quality voice services.

Verizon customers in Baltimore County can save with new versatile service packages that combine wireless, FiOS TV, FiOS Internet and home phone services, creating the company's first fully integrated communications and entertainment bundles carried over its top-rated 3G wireless and reliable landline networks.

New customers who sign up by Jan. 16 for FiOS quad-play or triple-play bundles that include broadband and TV also will receive a $150 Visa prepaid card. Existing Verizon Wireless customers can choose to add Verizon broadband or TV services, or both, to complete a bundle; existing Verizon broadband and TV customers can add Verizon Wireless voice service to their bundles.

Consumers who want to obtain more information about the new bundles or to place an order can call 1-877-VZISBIG (1-877-894-7244) or visit the Hunt Valley store.

FiOS TV Service Highlights

FiOS TV service highlights include:

• More than 500 all-digital channels grouped by genres such as entertainment, sports, news, marketplace, movies and family, making it easy for audiences to find their favorite programming.
• Approximately 132 high-definition (HD) channels in Maryland, with extraordinary clarity and theater-quality sound.
• An industry-leading library of more than 18,000 video-on-demand (VOD) titles each month - 70 percent of which are free. In addition, the VOD library includes more than 2,400 HD titles per month.
• An innovative interactive media guide (IMG) that provides next-generation, personalized interactive services, along with content from TV listings, VOD catalogs and the digital video recorder (DVR), as well as personal music and photos from a home network. Among the features of the IMG are:
  • Multi-Room DVR - Verizon's Home Media DVR allows customers to stream recorded HD and standard-definition (SD) programs to up to six other TV sets throughout the home. This includes the ability to watch three separately recorded shows on three TV sets at the same time, plus pause recorded programming in one room and continue watching in another.
  • Media Manager - This feature lets FiOS DVR customers access personal photos, videos, music and slide shows from their home computers and play them on their TVs. Subscribers also can search for and enjoy online videos from blip.tv, Dailymotion and Veoh on their TV screens.
  • Widgets - Customers have one-touch, on-demand access to personalized information such as traffic reports, daily local and national news headlines, fantasy sports, daily national sports headlines, and daily horoscopes, as well as interactive social TV applications from Twitter and Facebook, all while still enjoying their TV programming. Additional widgets include:
    • ESPN Fantasy Football - FiOS TV customers who are registered users of ESPN Fantasy Football will have instant on-screen access to personalized NFL statistics, including rosters, box scores, scoring leaders and player information.
    • Pro Football Widget - One-stop access to NFL stats and the NFL RedZone channel, giving customers who subscribe to the channel the ability to set on-screen alerts for whenever a team is moving inside its opponent's 20-yard line. The alerts, once set up, pop up at the bottom of the TV screen while subscribers are watching any channel.
    • KODAK Widget - This widget gives registered KODAK Gallery users instant on-screen access to photos and slideshows that they have stored on Kodak's online digital photo service.
    • Weatherbug Widget - Provides instant access to real-time, personalized weather information and forecasts. Subscribers can customize weather reports by any zip code, pull up hourly or seven-day forecasts, and view radar weather imagery to see how local conditions are developing.
  • Remote DVR Management - Subscribers can remotely control their DVRs online, and via any cell phone with a data plan. Customers can use the service to remotely review, change or add recording requests; delete recorded programs; browse and search TV and VOD listings; set parental controls; and more.
  • Free casual games - With the remote control and an HD set-top box, customers can access chess, solitaire, sudoku and wordplay.
  • "What's Hot on FiOS TV" - Features information on the most popular programs currently being broadcast in the region and the most popular VOD titles.
  • Dual Pause and Play - Allows customers to pause live programming, change channels, and then return to the paused program and pick up where they left off.
  • Channel sorting options - Customers can create two separate lists of favorite channels for family members. Customers also can filter channels in the guide by genre, for instances where a customer may only want to see HD content, international channels or kids programming, among others.

Programming choices for Hispanic, African-American, Asian, Russian and other multicultural audiences are available in every market, making FiOS TV an outlet for emerging and independent networks to showcase their diverse programming.

*NOTE: Actual (throughput) speeds will vary.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ - News), headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to mass market, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, serving more than 89 million customers nationwide. Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America's most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers innovative, seamless business solutions to customers around the world. A Dow 30 company, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of more than 230,000 and last year generated consolidated revenues of more than $97 billion. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

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