CLARIFICATION: Eric Rabe, Verizon’s senior vice president of media relations, wanted to clarify that FiOS has no shortage of set-top boxes. Another Verizon executive at the meeting told me that a shortage can be a factor in a slow rollout. But it’s not the case currently. Says Rabe, “At some point you’re building as fast as you can build and I believe we’re at that point.”
_________________________________________

Verizon’s FiOS TV service is now available to 1 million households in California. And a huge chunk of that is in the Orange County and Los Angeles areas, said Eric Rabe, Verizon’s senior vice president of media relations at a press event in Santa Monica today.

But where exactly those households are located, Verizon won’t offer specifics. It fears the competition will then focus on those neighborhoods and heavily discount TV service to prospective FiOS customers. I’m still trying to keep track of where FiOS is in Orange County so if you have it, let me know where you’re at.

The TV service, which offers more channels than many cable companies, is expanding in neighborhoods daily. Verizon officials said that they are moving as fast as they can but there can be delays due to the availability of digital set-top boxes, city permits and the workforce. (See clarification above.) The company has brought in contractors from outside the Southern California area to dig up the ground to lay the fiber-optic cables.

Verizon is sticking with its rollout plan of offering service first to customers already living in neighborhoods served by Verizon’s telephone service.

In Orange County, Verizon offers FiOS in Fountain Valley, Huntington Beach, Westminster, Garden Grove, Stanton and Seal Beach. It also plans to expand in Brea, Dana Point, La Habra, Laguna Beach and Laguna Niguel.

Of the 9.7 million households nationwide that can order FiOS, only about 23 percent order it. However in older FiOS markets, such as in Texas, FiOS is up to 50 percent penetration — near the same national rate of Time Warner Cable. Some cities in Texas started getting FiOS TV in 2005, which was two years before we here in O.C.

Rabe said the company is still on target to reach 18 million homes in 2010, which accounts for 50 percent of Verizon’s existing customer base.

More FiOS news:

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.