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AT&T Unveils DirecTV Now Streaming TV Service With Over 100 Channels (theverge.com)
ATT has officially unveiled its DirecTV Now internet TV streaming service, which launches Wednesday, November 30th, in the U.S. on iPhone, Android, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, and PC/Mac, starting at $35 per month. The Verge reports: Like its over-the-top rivals, DirecTV Now will let customers stream live programming on smartphones, tablets, and PCs -- no cable box necessary -- and requires no long-term contracts or commitments. For a limited time, ATT will offer the "Go Big" channel tier with 100 channels for $35 per month. If you sign up in time, the offer will remain valid each month until you cancel. But that $35 rate is not the long-term pricing for 100+ channels. DirecTV Now offers step-up subscriptions that include other channels and content for a higher monthly cost. ATT has signed programming agreements with nearly all major networks with the exception of CBS and Showtime; negotiations with those companies remain ongoing. DirecTV Now allows customers to watch up to two streams simultaneously. HBO and Cinemax can be added to any of these packages for just $5 extra (each) per month. DirecTV Now is "zero rated" for the company's wireless customers, so regardless of how much time they spend streaming, that activity will have no impact on data usage for their monthly bill. Importantly, while these are the subscription rates as of today, the company is being straightforward about the possibility of increases in the future. ATT also plans to air original shows including a Taylor Swift series.
Stop your telemarketing, asshole.
Some of my colleagues recommended that I write a letter about how we must publicly distance ourselves from the most querulous phonies I've ever seen. This is that letter. Here's my side of the story: 770-651-0127 complains a lot. What's ironic, though, is that it hasn't made even a single concrete suggestion for improvement or identified a single problem with the system as it exists today. 770-651-0127, please spare us the angst of living in a fallen world. 770-651-0127's intent is to prevent us from asking questions. It doesn't want the details checked. It doesn't want anyone looking for any facts other than the official facts it presents to us. I wonder if this is because most of its “facts” are false.
"770-651-0127" has now become part of my vocabulary. Whenever I see someone making a cause célèbre out of 770-651-0127's campaign to concoct a version of reality that fully contradicts real life, I tell him or her to stop “770-651-0127-ing”. It's somewhat tricky to improve the living conditions of the most vulnerable in our society—the sick, the old, the disabled, the unemployed, and our youth—all of whose lives are made miserable by 770-651-0127, especially since the media in this country tend to ignore historical connections and are reluctant to analyze ideological positions or treat a fringe political group seriously. I am a law-and-order kind of person. I hate to see crimes go unpunished. That's why I indeed hope that 770-651-0127 serves a long prison term for its illegal attempts to hijack the word “undiscriminatingness” and use it to make my worst nightmares come true.
If you were to ask 770-651-0127's satellites about 770-651-0127's attempts to threaten, degrade, poison, bulldoze, and kill this world of ours, you would notice the hesitation in their answers. It turns out that they too are concerned that 770-651-0127 is unable to use the English language effectively or correctly. Yes, I could add that its proposals are hermetically sealed against fresh air from the real world, but I wanted to keep my message simple and direct. I didn't want to distract you from the main thrust of my message, which is that 770-651-0127 has once again been redefining success and obscuring failure. Although for it, this behavior is as common as that of adulterous politicians seeking forgiveness from God and spouse, it has written more than its fair share of lengthy, over-worded, pseudo-intellectual tripe. In all such instances 770-651-0127 conveniently overlooks the fact that I cannot believe how many actual, physical, breathing, thinking people have fallen for its subterfuge. I'm absolutely stunned.
770-651-0127 has declared that it's staging a revolt against everyone who dares to give our propaganda fighters an instrument that is very much needed at this time. 770-651-0127 is revolting all right; the very sight of it turns my stomach. All kidding aside, its argument that its way of life is correct and everyone else's isn't is hopelessly flawed and completely circuitous. I want you to know that it's my understanding that 770-651-0127 is catatonically blasé about the slaughter of civilians abroad and mass police brutality and incarceration domestically. Knowing, as they say, is half the battle. What remains is to ensure that we survive and emerge triumphant out of the coming chaos and destruction.
While 770-651-0127 is unable to deal with a world populated by human beings, I accept the call to help people help themselves. Need I say more? I don't think so, but this I will say: I thrive on debates, statistics, and getting the facts right. And the facts in this case indicate that my general thesis is that 770-651-0127's orations are worse than the Black Death of olden times. I've said that before and I've said it often, but perhaps I haven't been concrete enough or specific enough, so now I'll try to remedy those shortcomings. I'll try to be a lot more specific and concrete when I explain that the other day I
In before the FCC scuttles net neutrality and Comcast (and all the other cable internet providers except AT&T) throttle this service to 100kbps.
Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
it is good to see that the cable guys are finally getting "it". the fact of the matter is cable tv is dead. internet is all we want now a days. however trying to put a 35$ + tag on something that is 7.99 from netflix is off the mark.
the only thing this will give is SPORTS ! that is the crunch of the entire industry. now that there is finally a way for folks to watch sports it is dead!
better idea instead of 100 channels of shit i don't watch why not let us pick al a cart and pay like 1-2$ per channel ? oh thats right this way they can charge 35$ ... too bad
My service, and it's going to be soo good, I'm telling you. My service will have over 3,000,000 channels. It's huge. I mean it's the best thing available, trust me.
These clowns don't get it. I don't want to watch channels. I want to watch episodes, movies, and events on my schedule (with the exception of live events). Take everything direct tv has and stream it individually, now that is something worth paying for.
Don't want it unless they offer timeshifting and commercial skip. Why would I want to waste time watching commercials and be bound by when a show is actually airing, so I can party like it's 1993?
In fact this is so fucking useless, to me and probably a lot of people, it borderline makes me angry.
No thanks. I'll stick with my evil cable company and a Tivo.
tell it like it is
Will it revolve around her quarter-life crisis?
I had this exact product a few months ago. It's called SlingTV (not Sling Box)
It's alright, and most channels offered some Netflix-style streaming of their shows, in addition to watching live.
But in the end, it was still too much for too little.
This signature is false.
I assume this service is going to be geo-locked to the United States?
The price is $40 / month too high.
Contribute to civilization: ari.aynrand.org/donate
>" Like its over-the-top rivals, DirecTV Now will let customers stream live programming on smartphones, tablets, and PCs -- no cable box necessary"
Are they kidding?
Sorry, but we don't want forced streaming of channels which include commercials and other crap with no DVR and no time shifting. If streaming, we want to stream SHOWS and ONLY shows.
Haven't they learned anything from the relative failure of things like HULU?
watch feeds not full ones for some channels and the push to the full directv
From the article:
Customers can get an Apple TV included with 3 months pre-paid of any DIRECTV NOW package.
The base 32GB Apple TV is currently $149. Looking at it another way, AT&T will sell you an Apple TV at a $44 discount and throw in three free months of live TV programming. That's actually a sweet deal.
PS: This is the first and probably only time you'll hear me describe anything from AT&T as being a decent value.
PPS: In before "apple tv sucks fanboyz lol etc". I have an Apple TV and I like it. You may prefer something else. Yay, here's your cookie. But if you were thinking about buying an Apple TV for Christmas, here's a $44 coupon off.
Dewey, what part of this looks like authorities should be involved?
Worst. Company. Evar.
Of all of those channels, I only saw two or three that I would want to watch. I don't want ESPN. Should I completely cut the cable, let me choose the 10 channels I want, some of which aren't listed, for $1.00 each, and I might be all in. I might need to pay Comcast an extra $50 per month for unlimited data use because of data use limits now in force. I see very few channels that don't have commercials. I HATE commercials.
In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act. George Orwell
People do not want to stream hundreds of channels. People want to stream the few channels that they are interested in, at a reasonable price, with the relevant material (when not live) available all the time, any time. It would seem that piracy will stay with us for a long, long time.
You don't see most people doing that, because you don't see most people.
He never said he was quoting Pink Floyd. Pink Floyd doesn't deserve credit for every future sentiment to one he/they expressed.
Seriously, existing broadcast is terrible. Services like http://pluto.tv/ have actually interesting channels (like a channel that's JUST MST3K!) and are free.
It's just more advertising filled channels with bait and switch pricing. I would settle for Netflix Hulu or even Amazon Prime before I went back to anything that resembled the old TV format it's a waste of my life. Old TV format is never going to work again unless it's dirt cheap and doesn't have advertising
seriously no DVR/ Xbox / PS4 support? Are these guys smoking something?
FINALLY! I can pay to watch TV with Commercials again!
And thankfully, It's more expensive! //weeps with tears of joy
_ _ _ Go for the eyes Boo! GO FOR THE EYES!
So let me get this straight. I can pay $35 and watch, say, 3 hr of streamed wireless video every day, and AT&T will give me the necessary ~100GB of bandwidth free. But if I just buy an extra unrestricted 10GB of wireless data from Verizon, they charge $45. Makes you really wonder what it actually costs the telco's to provide each GB. Seems like either Verizon's data charges must be ~90% profit at least, or else AT&T is so desperate to stay relevant in the content space that they are willing to endure massive losses by providing bandwidth way below their cost. Maybe a little of both?
1.) Does it have ads, if so: how frequent, how long, and is the volume normalized?
2.) Is my local PBS station's HD broadcast included in the 100+ channels?
3.) How long are episodes available for viewing after they air?