Verizon is dumping FiOS1, but keeping ‘hyperlocal’ news

Verizon said it will continue to offer "hyperlocal" news for its customers after announcing the company was ending its agreement with to produce FiOS1 newscasts.

Hudson Valley-based RNN and Verizon had an agreement for the past three years to produce three local newscasts for New Jersey, the Lower Hudson Valley and Long Island under the FiOS1 name. Verizon spokesman Tony McNary told the Rockland/Westchester Journal News the companies had ended negotiations to continue their agreement and the newscasts would end on Nov. 16.

RIchard French, RNN's president of local news , onfirmed to the Rockland/Westchester News that 150 employees who produced FiOS 1 programming on his payroll would lose their jobs.

After getting backlash from New York politicians over the decision, McNary on Tuesday  told the Rockland/Westchester News that Verizon would continue to offer local news but it would not be called FiOS 1 or produced by RNN.

David Lamendola, Verizon's governmental affairs director in New York and Connecticut, said in a message on Twitter there would be no lapse in coverage and their plans would be announced "soon."

"We understand hyperlocal news is important to @verizonfios customers, and plan to continue offering it," Lamendola tweeted.

Lamendola and McNary gave no indication of what the source of their news would be including a possible partnership with rival cable company Altice which produces News 12 newscasts for the same coverage area or involve any current RNN staffers.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ

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