Municipality by municipality, Verizon is making plans to bring its version of cable television to the Pittsburgh area.

The company announced yesterday that it is close to reaching franchise agreements with its first 19 southwestern Pennsylvania municipalities -- a necessary step before Verizon's FiOS TV can compete with Philadelphia-based cable giant Comcast.

FiOS TV, which will deliver television programming over Verizon's fiber-optic network, is expected to be available in southwestern Pennsylvania "by the end of the year, if not sooner," said Verizon spokesman Lee Gierczynski.

The FiOS television service, which launched in September 2005, entered the Philadelphia market last fall and currently is available in parts of 11 other states.

Verizon hasn't yet set an official price for FiOS TV in the Pittsburgh area, said Mr. Gierczynski, but the most popular package, which offers 200 channels in high definition and includes an on-demand feature, currently costs $42.99 per month in Philadelphia.

Comcast's "Enhanced Cable" digital service, which includes some on-demand options, costs about $53.50 per month, depending on the municipality. Comcast also offers a one-year "Triple Play" deal, with television, phone and Internet service available for $33 each per month when new customers subscribe to all three.

Verizon offers bundling with FiOS television in some areas, said Mr. Gierczynski, but the price varies by market.

The franchise agreements close to approval cover more than 100,000 households in Bethel Park, Mt. Lebanon, Peters and Upper St. Clair in the South Hills, as well as Etna, Fox Chapel, Franklin Park, Hampton, Indiana Township, McCandless, Millvale, O'Hara, Ohio Township, Reserve, Ross, Shaler, Sharpsburg, West Deer and Westview in the North Hills. Each individual municipality still must vote to approve the franchise agreements.

Verizon needs local franchise agreements -- which state law requires to regulate customer service standards, rights of way and municipal revenue percentages -- to enter a market.

Verizon also is negotiating franchise agreements with more than 50 additional municipalities in Southwestern Pennsylvania, said Mr. Gierczynski, and is continuing to expand its fiber-optic network throughout the region. The company already offers FiOS Internet services in communities throughout the region where its fiber-optic network is in place.

The four South Hills communities have reached tentative agreements and are mainly waiting for local legislative bodies to pass the legislation. Dan Cohen, an attorney who helped negotiate the contracts, said he expected all four municipalities to pass the legislation by the end of August, barring any unforeseen circumstances.

The North Hills municipalities are slightly behind in reaching agreements, he said, but those deals are close to completion.

Mr. Cohen, a former Pittsburgh City Council member, declined to comment on the substance of the franchise agreement talks.

"What I can say is that we've certainly had some spirited negotiations with Verizon," he said.