Verizon to Let You Choose and Change Channels Monthly

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Cable companies are ready to give customers more of what they want. Well, at least one is.

Reuters reports that Verizon Communications will offer what it’s calling “Custom TV” via its fiber-optic network, FiOS.

The new service aims to give customers more flexibility in what channels they get. It comes at a time when Internet-based TV services are becoming increasingly popular alternatives to traditional cable providers.

Custom TV’s cheapest plan, called the “base offer,” costs $55 per month, according to the Wall Street Journal. It includes a fixed set of “base channels” plus two “channel packs” of the customer’s choice. Additional channel packs can be added for $10 each.

The base channels include broadcast networks like ABC and Fox as well as cable networks like CNN, AMC, Food Network and HGTV.

The channel packs are genre-specific bundles. The kids bundle includes channels like Cartoon Network, Disney and Nickelodeon, for example. Other bundles cover genres like entertainment, lifestyle, news and info, pop culture, and sports.

Reuters reports that customers can choose bundles monthly.

Verizon is targeting consumers who want less than the fully loaded cable and satellite TV packages, and more than the smaller, cheaper bundles offered by some traditional TV providers, as well as some Internet TV services.

“Increasingly customers are saying, ‘I want to pay for what I view,'” Tami Erwin, president of Verizon’s national operations, tells Reuters.

Verizon posted to its website today that Custom TV will be available starting Sunday and no contract will be required, according to an Associated Press report.

Don’t rush into it without comparing Custom TV to Internet-based TV options, though. When we broke down the latter in “How To Choose The Right Cord-Cutting TV Service” last month, prices started as low as $8 per month.

Does Custom TV pique your interest? Share your thoughts in a comment below or on our Facebook page. And share this story with friends who have been dreaming of a la carte TV service.

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