• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, July 29, 2009

Verizon's FiOS telco TV service is taking customers away from cable companies; now, the telecom giant is using its partnership with satellite operator DirecTV to potentially lure more.

It is offering new customers a triple-play package that includes DirecTV's NFL Sunday Ticket package free for the coming season. Customers do have to agree to a Verizon deal for a year that includes a certain high-speed Internet service and DirecTV for two.

The triple play includes phone, Internet and TV. Bundling the three has been a boon to cable operators.

One version of the Verizon/DirecTV package -- for $120 a month after a rebate -- includes Showtime free and a DirecTV HD DVR service. The Sunday Ticket package, which offers every NFL game each Sunday, is valued at $300 a month.

New customers who sign up for versions of the package also get a free Compaq netbook or Flip camcorder. That offer has been in place for more than a month.

The Sunday Ticket deal is in markets where Verizon does not offer FiOS.