Verizon introduced a new way for its FiOS customers to choose only the channels they want to watch. The new program is an a la carte system that will give customers a better value and provide them with only the channels they want, USAToday Money reports.

The new program called FiOS Custom TV is set to be released Sunday. The base package costs $55 per month and will include local broadcast channels and popular cable channels like CNN, HGTV, AMC and Food Network.

Subscribers will also receive two of the seven packages that are based on the genre of their choice. The package choices include kids, pop culture, lifestyle, entertainment, news & info, sports and sports plus.

ESPN was not happy to learn about the new offering from Verizon. ESPN said on Friday that these channel packs would violate the terms of their existing contracts.

"Media reports about Verizon's new contemplated bundles describe packages that would not be authorized by our existing agreements," ESPN said in a statement. "Among other issues, our contracts clearly provide that neither ESPN nor ESPN2 may be distributed in a separate sports package."

Customers can add additional channel packs for $10 each. After 30 days, customers can change their package choices without any penalty, Verizon said. The prices are kept down by customers signing two-year contracts, but customers willing to pay a little more can join on a month-to-month basis.

A popular TV-Internet package can be purchased for $75 per month. This package includes the base package with two channel packs and 50 megabits per second Internet. This price is good for customers on a two-year contract.

The sports pack will include ESPN and Fox Sports. If customers want regional sports networks they will have to add the sports plus channel pack. This pack also includes NFL Network, MLB Network, NBA TV, NHL Network and Golf Channel.

The entertainment pack comes with TNT, TBS and USA Network. The lifestyle pack will come with Animal Planet and Bravo. The pop culture pack will include Comedy Central and MTV.

FiOS is currently offering five TV plans and four of them will continue to be offered. FiOS' most basic package, FiOS Local which consists of local broadcast channels, will continue to be offered. The Select HD package, which does not include ESPN will no longer be offered and will be replaced by FiOS Custom TV. That plan was offered for $50 a month.

Most cable packages today offer over 100 channels, but most customers only watch on average about 17 channels, Verizon said, citing Nielsen's Advertising & Audience Report.

Verizon's plan is aiming to keep customers from leaving cable in favor of streaming services like Netflix or Hulu. Cable customers have complained about having to pay for channels that they do not watch and the channel "bundles" have frustrated them in recent years.

"This is an entirely new way to personalize TV," said Tami Erwin, president of Verizon's Consumer and Mass Business group.