AT&T WatchTV Will No Longer Come with New AT&T Wireless Plans, Is It The Next To Go?
Customers Will Get HBO Max, Instead of Option of Streaming Service
In June 2018, AT&T launched AT&T WatchTV, a $15 skinny bundle that include channels from A+E, Discovery, Viacom, Hallmark, and Turner. The service was free to customers who subscribed to their AT&T Unlimited &More Plans.
With the introduction of their new AT&T Unlimited Starter, Extra, and Elite plans launched today — that benefit is going away. Instead, you will get additional hotspot data, and in the case of the Elite plan — HBO Max. The service which was formally announced yesterday, will launch in May 2020, with 10,000 hours of content including original series and a wide library of shows (Friends, The Big Bang Theory, South Park) and movies.
AT&T Unlimited Extra
The AT&T Unlimited Extra plan, which is most similar to AT&T Unlimited &More, now comes with 15GB of mobile hotspot data for $40 per line on 4 lines — but no longer comes with AT&T Watch TV.
AT&T Unlimited Elite
The AT&T Unlimited Elite plan, which is most similar to AT&T Unlimited &More Premium, now comes with 30GB of mobile hotspot data for $50 per line on 4 lines — but no longer comes with AT&T Watch TV or the choice of a streaming subscription. Instead, customers will get HBO Max included with the service, rather than getting to pick between HBO, Cinemax, Showtime, Spotify, Pandora, and VRV.
AT&T Watch TV was heavily promoted as only being viable if AT&T’s deal for Time Warner was approved. With AT&T upping the price of AT&T TV NOW by $15 a month earlier this month, the question is whether AT&T WatchTV is next?
In January, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson shared that AT&T WatchTV, the company’s skinny bundle, has 500,000 “established accounts.” Since many of those are for existing AT&T Unlimited &More subscribers — the true number of paid accounts is unclear.
While it doesn’t have a DVR, it is the cheapest Live TV Streaming Service available to customers. But, if it isn’t tied to any wireless promotion — the chances of it’s survival appears slim.