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Verizon Plans Netflix Rival

Could be available sometime next year

By Matt Cantor, Newser Staff

Posted Dec 6, 2011 5:27 PM CST

(Newser) – As if Netflix's year hasn't been tough enough. The streaming movie company may soon face a new rival in the form of a Verizon online video service, Reuters reports. The service would be available to 85 million households outside Verizon's current FIOS broadband and cable markets, and could be ready as soon as next year, insiders say. It may not, however, offer the kind of variety Netflix does: Instead, it could present movie packages along the lines of Starz Play or children's shows from a partner such as Disney.

Verizon has been discussing the idea for the past two years with programmers, who are worried about damaging partnerships with the cable companies the new service would threaten. Cable firms are concerned about customers fleeing for cheaper web-based services. Verizon's plan would likely be priced similarly to Netflix. The news follows word of a planned Verizon deal with Time-Warner and Comcast that could further alter the landscape of the industry.

Verizon is planning a service to compete with Netflix. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, FILE)

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COMMENTS

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Showing 3 of 3 comments

purple6

Dec 6, 2011 11:21 PM CST

I love netflix. I get all the movies an TV I can watch for 30 bucks a months. And commercial free.

ballen

Dec 6, 2011 8:12 PM CST

Netflix has been here for many years and offers many independent movies and older movies I didn't have the opportunity to see when they were fresh. Also foreign films not available anywhere else without purchasing them. It would take years for another company to come up to where Netflix is today.

WarmWeatherGuy

Dec 6, 2011 6:01 PM CST

It may not, however, offer the kind of variety Netflix does... Then they aren't much of a Netflix rival, are they? I use Netflix DVD/Blu-ray because of the massive selection of movies and the high quality. I don't use streaming Netflix because the selection isn't there yet.

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Verizon Plans Netflix Rival

Could be available sometime next year

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

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