Nearly 56,000 Prince George’s County households no longer have to turn to Comcast for cable television service.
Verizon announced Wednesday that its “FiOS TV” is now available in parts of more than 30 Prince George’s communities, including Capitol Heights, Greenbelt, Kettering, Largo and New Carrollton.
“We are looking to provide consumers with a healthy alternative, a competitive alternative,” Verizon spokesman Harry Mitchell told The Examiner on Wednesday.
Earlier this month, Verizon announced that its digital service was available to more than 75,000 households in Montgomery County. Mitchell would not disclose how many households have signed up for the service but said, “We are more than happy with the response we’ve had so far.”
Mitchell said there are 207,000 FiOS TV customers nationwide as of Dec. 31.
Comcast had been the counties’ only cable provider, but the respective county councils passed separate legislation in November paving the way for the competition. Verizon already offered Internet service in both counties.
Verizon plans to phase in service in the two counties, beginning with the more populous regions where it already has installed its high-speed all-fiber-optic network for its Internet service.
“From a competitive standpoint, we are very confident in our network, and in the products and services we deliver today in Prince George’s County,” Comcast spokeswoman Lisa Altman told The Examiner in an e-mail. “The phone company is simply trying to catch up.”
Potential FiOS TV subscribers can go to www.verizon.com/fiostv to determine whether service is available in their homes.
