AT&T Will Offer a Lower-Quality Video Option But Without a Discount (fortune.com)

After T-Mobile and Sprint introduced lower-cost wireless plans in return for customers accepting lower quality video streaming, AT&T is following suit. An anonymous reader shares a Fortune report:The second-largest wireless carrier said it would introduce a feature starting next year called "Stream Saver" to let customers voluntarily downgrade streaming video from any service -- including YouTube and Netflix -- to DVD quality. But AT&T will not lower prices or give a discount to customers activating the lower-quality stream, which would use much less data than watching a typical high-definition video stream. The data used will also still count against a customer's monthly data allowance. AT&T emphasized that the optional feature was intended to help customers use less data, essentially stretching their monthly allowance to go further. "Stream saver lets them enjoy more of what they love," David Christopher, chief marketing officer in AT&T's entertainment group, said in a statement. "And, they are in control -- it's their choice on how to use this innovative feature."

Comments

I'd just set it to DVD all the time then.

[kalpol]

Watching Netflix on a phone - maybe my eyes aren't good but I can't tell much of a difference between DVD quality and 1080p or whatever anyway. DVD is juuust fine. But can't you downgrade that quality on Netflix settings anyway?

Big "win" for crappy-service areas

[davidwr]

When I'm in an area with low-bandwidth, I'd rather have lower-resolution with smooth video than high-resolution choppy video.

Ditto if I'm in an area with high-speed-but-crappy/dropout-prone service, as I can buffer enough to not notice if I'm watching at low-resolution.

I put "win" in quotes because while this seems like a win for the customer, it's really a way for AT&T to not have to spend money as fast improving their network. So it's a real win for them and a "win" for customers.

Innovative

[93 Escort Wagon]

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

Re: Innovative

[davidwr]

From The Marketer's Dictionary and Book of Phrases:

Innovative: Adj., used to describe a thing worth reading about.

Worth reading about: see: worth buying

Worth buying: something marketed to gullible people with money

Translation from maketspeak:

Innovative: something marketed to gullible people with money.

Why would AT&T offer a discount?

[JoeyRox]

Not sure why the mention of no discount is even relevant. You're still using AT&T's data, at the same rate you agreed to in your contract. You'd just be using less of it while watching video, meaning you'd have more data available for other usage.

Re:Why would AT&T offer a discount?

[Guybrush_T]

That fact that you use less data is some kind of discount : you don't have to pay for extra data usage for the rest of your needs.

Re:Why would AT&T offer a discount?

[MightyYar]

Agreed - it seems like an unfair criticism of a useful feature.

Re:Why would AT&T offer a discount?

[squiggleslash]

Because the other cellphone companies that provide similar features do provide a discount. T-Mobile's "Binge-On" is free, for example, as long as it's streaming from content providers who've agreed to stream the way T-Mobile wants them to.

T-Mobile

[Frederic54]

AFAIK 480p quality is "free" on T-Mobile data network, meaning it does not count on your data, same for music.

Re:I'd want it on residential internet too

[MightyYar]

On the desktop, you can use the free "Spotify" application or web interface. You can also simply download the tracks, legally or otherwise. I'm not sure there's a problem that needs to be solved here. Many of those YouTube videos have no real video data anyway - they are either a static picture or a bit of text for lyrics and compress to almost nothing.

As far as AT&T is concerned ...

[PPH]

... it's raw data. If I want to reduce the resolution, I'll do so via my client settings. AT&T has no business inspecting those packets.

Re:As far as AT&T is concerned ...

[srg33]

It seems to be voluntary. Do you use a separate client for each and every video streaming service?
When I'm using my phone for streaming, it is usually in browser.

Re:As far as AT&T is concerned ...

[PPH]

When I'm using my phone for streaming, it is usually in browser.

Also none of AT&T's business. I'll use whatever browser I feel like. The video quality negotiations happens between that client and the content server. The result is I use some bandwidth. Whatever that ends up being, charge me for it.

Re:Wat?

[hawguy]

Yeah, I can only guess that maybe it's a global setting, so you don't have to remember or worry about what quality a video is playing at when you're watching on your phone. Still, doesn't seem like much of a big deal.

The Netflix app (at least on Android) has settings in the Mobile app:

• Wifi only
• Low (4 hours/GB)
• Medium (2 hours/GB)
• High (1 hour/GB)
• Unlmited (not recommended without unlimited data plan)

Doomed to fail?

[Dishwasha]

I'm still stung by AT&T dropping support for Picturephone

Re:Wat?

[bondsbw]

A global setting could also help mom/dad keep kids from going over the data cap.

Less for More!

[pubwvj]

I farm. I raise pigs on pasture and sell the pork to our customers weekly. As a special feature starting in 2017 to help you reduce your calorie consumption I will be selling you 2 oz when you buy 1 pound of meat. The 2 oz of meat will be packaged with 14 oz of water. This way you can enjoy eating three pounds a day and still stay within your caloric budget.

Wait a minute. If I did that I would be arrested, quite rightfully, and thrown in jail for cheating my customers. What AT&T is offering is just as absurd.

Re:Less for More!

[Immerman]

Nonsense - AT&T is renting you bandwidth by the second (marketed as selling you data access by the MB), and nothing about this is changing anything about the amount of total amount of data you can download for your money.

All they're doing is offering an extra feature that gives you the option of automatically using lower quality video streams so that you you're consuming that data more slowly when watching video on a tiny screen where you'll probably barely notice the quality difference anyway.

Now, if it's true this is going to be the default behavior... that could be a bit annoying if there's no obvious way to disable it. But for the vast majority who rarely even look at even the most obvious settings it's probably a net win.

TLS

[manu0601]

How can they degrade a Youtube video flowing through a TLS session?

Re:TLS

[Immerman]

Youtube normally offers lots of degraded options built in, seems like it shouldn't be terribly difficult to modify which one is requested. Might require going through a proxy though.