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Verizon (VZ) Sets Crosshairs on Netflix (NFLX) with New Undertaking

December 6, 2011 3:40 PM EST
Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) has been hampered over the last few months with management guffaws and emerging competition from the likes of Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN), DISH Networks (NYSE: DISH), and others.

But a new competitor is about to enter the arena, preloaded with an armada of customers: Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ).

According to Reuters, Verizon is looking to make a streaming media service available to customers which are currently out side its FiOS areas, which Reuters currently calculates at 85 million potential U.S. households.

Sources have said that Verizon could roll the thing out sometime in 2012, though no other estimates have honed in a more specific date.

Verizon is also already in discussions with studios, such as Liberty Media (Nasdaq: LINTA), Viacom (NYSE: VIA-B), and possibly Disney (NYSE: DIS).

Currently, Verizon has about 5 million FiOS subscribers. Pricing for any service that Verizon rolls out is likely to remain competitive with Netflix, which currently boasts 23 million subscribers.

Late last-week, Verizon's wireless unit entered a deal with SpectrumCo -- a joint venture between Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA), Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) -- in which it will acquire its 122 Advanced Wireless Services spectrum licenses covering 259 million POPs for $3.6 billion.

Verizon is 1 percent higher Tuesday, while Netflix is down 2.5 percent.


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