AT&T DEAL SETS UP COMPETITION For cord-cutters, even more choices
AT&T’s green light to seal its $85.4 billion deal for Time Warner is expected to kick off a new wave of video-streaming services seeking to battle Netflix.
Consumers won’t have to wait long to see results from the No. 2 wireless company and owner of DirecTV adding Turner, HBO and Warner Bros. to its stable.
This week, AT&T will launch Watch TV, an ad-supported video service that’s free for its unlimited wireless subscribers and $15 for other consumers. The entertainment-centric service will have Turner channels and no sports, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson said. “Those are the kind of things we are going to be bringing to market,” he said on CNBC on Friday.
AT&T needed the deal, Stephenson has said, to evolve into a modern media company that could compete with companies such as Netflix, Amazon, Facebook and Google. Other traditional media players will be making their own moves to keep pace.
A look at some of the possibilities from the major players:
AT&T: In addition to Watch TV, AT&T will likely look for ways to expand the reach of DirecTV Now. And it could even launch a targeted sports service, said Joel Espelien, an analyst with Plano, Texasbased research firm The Diffusion Group. Earlier this year, Turner announced plans to include pay-perview of live games in progress as part of its Bleacher Report Live service in the upcoming NBA season.
Disney: The Walt Disney Co. has set its sights on expanding its media empire with a $52.4 billion bid on a coveted collection of 21st Century Fox’s assets
including its movie studios and TV studio. That may not be a sure thing, as Comcast is now in the bidding, too.
Comcast: Comcast also wants to add Fox’s assets to its catalog. Should it succeed, it could eventually enter the streaming service business itself. Currently Comcast sells Xfinity Instant TV with 10-plus channels including local ones – plus broadband service – for $39.99 monthly. Current Xfinity broadband customers can add it for about $18. And you can add more channels, including HBO.
CBS: CBS has sought a merger with Viacom. CBS already has a CBS All Access streaming service, priced at $5.99 monthly (limited commercials; $9.99 monthly no commercials), with original series and free ad-supported CBS Sports HQ and CBSN news services. Viacom’s brands including Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, BET, Comedy Central, MTV and VH1 would expand its roster.
Verizon: The nation’s largest wireless provider, which acquired AOL and Yahoo in 2015 and 2017, respectively, then last year launched a new company, Oath, has ambitions of being a major content and digital advertising player, too. Beyond its own go90 video service, Verizon has made video deals with the NBA and Hearst Media; Hearst and Verizon, collectively, also own 49 percent of AwesomenessTV, which creates original mobile video for younger audiences.
Lionsgate: The studio, which owns premium network Starz, has seen its stock price rise 6 percent since the AT&T decision. With Lionsgate relatively value priced at a market cap of $5.4 billion, “people are thinking they are in play,” Espelien said. “There is this gold rush for original content.”