Verizon Signs Disney For Broadband-Over-Fiber Video Service

The country's largest phone company, Verizon Communications, has inked a long-term programming deal with Walt Disney Co. to carry a dozen of the company's television networks on its growing FiOS TV broadband video service.

The agreement includes ABC Family, ABC News Now, Disney Channel, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic, ESPNEWS, ESPNU, ESPN HD, ESPN2 HD, Toon Disney, and SOAPnet, as well as retransmission deals for ABC-owned TV stations.

Verizon will immediately start selling its broadband FiOS TV service in Keller, Tex.--where fiber has been laid through 8,700 homes--as a test market.

The ad inventory component of the deal is structured similarly to other cable and satellite distribution arrangements, according to a Disney spokeswoman. Verizon will get two minutes of advertising time per hour in all Disney networks--except for the commercial-free Disney Channel and ABC News Now.

Diromg the last 12 months, Verizon entered into content deals with NBC Universal, A&E Networks, Showtime, Discovery Networks, and Turner Broadcasting, to name a few. It is also close to completing a deal with News Corp.

Verizon asserts that its FiOS broadband service, delivered via fiber-optic lines, is faster than broadband delivered through cable or phone lines. The company plans for FiOS to be available in 3 million homes in 15 states by the end of this year.

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