Sometimes enemies are your best friends. That is apparently true in the television industry. Recently, Comcast announced that they will partner with Verizon FiOS to sell advertising in a total of ten markets where both companies fight for customers.

While financial details of the agreement haven’t been released, it is believed that Comcast’s sales department will handle the advertising for both companies in the ten markets.

The ten markets in question are Washington, DC; Seattle, Washington; Richmond, Virginia; Portland, Oregon; Boston, Massachusetts; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Baltimore, Maryland; Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Fort Wayne, Indiana and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Verizon FiOS offers bundled services that include telephone, internet and television using fiber-optic technology. It’s estimated that about 2.1 million people in the United States have Verizon FiOS television.

Comcast, which also offers telephone, internet and television service, has reportedly more than 40 million cable television subscribers.

Comcast and Verizon FiOS working together (Image: Flickr)

The Federal Trade Commission announced today that both DirecTV and Comcast are being fined today for making phone calls to people who has asked them not to call back. This violates the do-not-call law, called the Telemarketing Sales Rule.

DirecTV has faces such fines in the past. In 2005, DirecTV paid a $5.3 million settlement for violating FTC’s rules regarding the Do Not Call registry. This time, both DirecTV and Comcast are facing fines for calling people who specifically requested to be put on the companies’ internal do not call lists. DirecTV has agreed to pay a $2.3 million settlement, while Comcast’s fines reach $900,000.

last month, the FTC sued Dish Network for allegedly violating the Telemarketing Sales Rule. The company has denied these allegations and is fighting the charges, though the government says that they are its biggest violator based on over 20,000 complaints from the general public.

There are over 167 million phone numbers on the Do Not Call registry, and companies face fines of up to $16,000 per number called. Charities, political organizations, those doing surveys, and companies calling customers within 18 months of a previous purchase are exempt from these telemarketing rules.

Image via sxc.hu.

In a joint venture, Sony and Comcast will be opening a retail store in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The store, which will carry the name Sony StyleComcast Labs, will be used by both companies to show off new products, services and technologies.

Sony Logo - Source: Flickr

Although many experts are questioning the timing of this venture, especially with the economy in shambles and consumer buying at a quarter century low, it appears as if Sony and Comcast will be trying to mimic the success of the Apple stores across the United States. The Sony StyleComcast Labs store will be nearly 3,500 square feet and will be located in the Comcast Center building.

With Sony, one of the world’s largest electronics companies, and Comcast, one of the world’s largest cable companies, working together, many interesting products could be debuted at this new store. One such product is cable internet equipment that allows for speeds of more than 15 times faster than current cable internet capabilities.

Another company that is reportedly looking to follow in the footsteps of the Apple stores is Microsoft. Although the unveiling date of the Microsoft stores hasn’t been made public, Microsoft has already hired personnel to make the idea a reality.

Source: Wire Reports