Verizon introduced Free View, allowing FiOS TV subscribers to get a glimpse of what premium cable channels have to offer first before availing one.
Customers will be able to start a 48-hour free trial at the tap of a button on their remote controls, and they can choose from premium channels such as Cinemax, EPIX, HBO, Showtime and STARZ.
With flexibility in mind, the carrier is giving its consumers the choice of when to activate the 48-hour window.
"Free previews of premium TV channels are common, but the timing of them has never been the customer's choice. With Free View on FiOS TV, customers now schedule a preview at their convenience, when it fits into their schedule," Verizon says.
More to the point, FiOS TV customers can view the Free View content virtually on any platform, including at home on live TV or on demand and outside via the FiOS mobile app.
The only caveat is that the 48-hour previews for each premium channel can only be activated once a year, but that's not exactly a deal breaker.
While it may be shorter than the free trials of some of the networks, it's certainly refreshing how the power to get previews of premium channels is conveniently at the hand of the customers. In other words, it's instant access without the need to call customer service.
In the age of cord cutters, this can be considered another measure of Verizon to boost the number of premium TV viewers. It also comes on the heels of the company's "skinny" bundles launched back in April 2015, which were described as "creating the appearance of more choice."
Verizon suffered a considerable downsize in subscriber growth in the fourth quarter of 2015, during which only 20,000 new customers signed up for the TV service. Compared with last year's figure of 116,000, that's a pretty big step down.
There's a chance that Verizon will roll out more perks such as the Free View for FiOS TV subscribers in the future.
