Verizon FiOS On Demand Spring Marathon Features the Industry's Biggest TV Binge Event to Date

NEW YORK, March 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- FiOS TV customers should get prepared for a fun week of free full and current TV seasons, movies and more on their TV screens as Verizon's massive spring free FiOS On Demand Marathon ushers in April with non-stop, free continuous programming.

From April 1-7, the free FiOS On Demand Marathon, #FiOSBinge, builds upon the growing TV binge craze involving customers who crave to watch TV at times that are more convenient to their busy schedule.

The #FiOSBinge coincides with an HBO free preview weekend for FiOS TV customers that starts April 4. It will feature full seasons of HBO's "Game of Thrones," "True Detective" and "Girls," ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" and "Nashville," NBC's "Chicago Fire" and "Parks and Recreation," plus many others. Overall, more than 90 full seasons will be available during the TV marathon.

Additionally, more than 2,300 movies will be available for customers with #FiOSBinge, including "The Great Gatsby," "Hangover 3," "The Heat," "World War Z," "The Hobbit" and "42."

"More variety and more versatility are the hallmark of this On Demand Marathon and FiOS On Demand every day," said Terry Denson, Verizon's vice president for content strategy and acquisition. "Content has become so much more than what customers see every day through scheduled FiOS programming. It's also about providing the selective TV and movie options customers want, along with the leading technology to maximize their enjoyment.

"FiOS brings the most on-demand content to the TV screen, and we offer that to customers with HD picture quality rated higher than cable; content mobility in and out of the home on customers' favorite devices with the FiOS Mobile App; and DVR capabilities that let customers manage their entertainment to meet their lifestyle and life schedule," said Denson.

The On Demand Marathon encourages FiOS customers to explore and use the FiOS On Demand platform.  Last fall, 1 in 4 FiOS TV customers participated in the Verizon fall marathon.  For comparison, 48 percent more video-on-demand transactions took place during the days of the fall marathon as compared with those same days the previous year. In addition, the popularity of the marathons is growing. The fall marathon had 45 percent more VOD participants than Verizon's previous major VOD marathon in May 2013.

Since then, new features have been added to FiOS On Demand, like the ability to own complete seasons of popular TV series, with one click of the remote to make the purchase via electronic sell-through. There are also timely entertainment opportunities geared to the latest events, like the Academy Awards folder of nominated movies, and great deals offered on owning some of the latest movie releases in the market, to name a few.

With more than 80,000 titles available, the FiOS On Demand library is an industry leader, according to SNL Kagan, which noted in its "2013 Multichannel Market Trends" report that the on-demand library grew by 72 percent from 2012.

Over 80 percent of FiOS customers make transactions using the On Demand function.  And VOD transactions grew 18 percent during 2013 according to Rentrak. Many FiOS on Demand titles from premium services like HBO -- such as "The Great Gatsby," "The Heat" and "The Hobbit" -- are not available on Netflix. 

Most FiOS On Demand new release titles are available before they are released on DVD and often weeks before they are available on the Netflix DVD service. 

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ), headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to consumer, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, with nearly 103 million retail connections nationwide. Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America's most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers integrated business solutions to customers in more than 150 countries. A Dow 30 company with more than $120 billion in 2013 revenues, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of 176,800. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.

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SOURCE Verizon