AT&T plans to move all DirecTV customers to new streaming service

[Bodo Fenrirsson]

AT&T plans to move all DirecTV customers to new streaming service
http://cordcuttersnews.com/att-plans-move-directv-subscribers-new-streaming-service/

They plan to complete move within 3-5 years. No word on what happens to rural customers without internet access, or those who have no access to Uverse internet, since you know that no other cable ISP is going to stand for this. 5G LTE assess? Powerline wireless access they are testing?

 

[Bodo Fenrirsson]

DirecTV Now isn't a cord cutting venture afterall?

 

[maestro7]

I call click-bait on this one.

There are no obvious links to news reports, et al., on this subject per this particular blog post. Instead, it looks like an op-ed piece.

Instead, try this on for size:

http://www.tvpredictions.com/directv101316.htm

 

[mdram]

impossible to do, as many sat customers have no internet

 

[AZ.]

impossible to do, as many sat customers have no internet

I agree....Im here far north of Phoenix, my internet is ok...but when ever there is a load, its crawls....and uploads are not very good either.

 

[ejb1980]

Dumb. Directv Now is dumb. I have Directv NOW (via satellite) and it comes over the top (via my HR44). If it ain't broke don't fix it, but then AT&T gets involved. Mind you Comcast just put a cap on... Streaming is not TV. It skips, buffers, gets blurry, and is dependent upon the local cable/Internet provider, so why not just have them? How stupid, I, too, call click bait. How on earth could a family watching 3 TVs stream 3 HD shows at once? The Fios commercials I see (but can't get) always talk about connecting all the devices, but the fine print says 480p. What a gigantic step backwards to have a TV provider that depends upon another to exist!

 

[Mauiguy]

Are you folks telling me that my 7 meg download speed from Hawaiiantel is not going to be adequate to watch HD TV or yet 4K TV? The idea of streaming is absurd and will certainly cost ATT many customers.

In fact, without Directv I would need to invest over ten thousand dollars to install cable. Trench 500 feet, install huge conduit for special cable, purchase signal boosters, install pull boxes, pay for that special cable at about two dollars per foot, and then rent it from them for the rest of my life.

There is no over the air TV on my part of Maui. Things could get really quiet out here.......

 

[mdram]

4k needs @ 25mbs iirc, some say 15-20 will work

 

[SamCdbs]

Clickbait.

Aside from the fact that AT&T would be walking away from millions of rural customers, and the crushing cost of replacing millions of boxes, DirecTV has sats on order and launch slots reserved for years to come.

 

[ejb1980]

4k needs @ 25mbs iirc, some say 15-20 will work

I have 25 and 1 stream of HD is iffy. My former roommate used to stream a lot and would get SO frustrated with it. Forget it in the evening when everyone around is using it, too.

 

[Zashel]

the only way the satellites are worthwhile is through economies of scale. if they're getting people OFF the satellites, they're shooting their financial statements in the foot half way through a marathon.

 

[Ronnie-]

4k needs @ 25mbs iirc, some say 15-20 will work

18 is adequate if nothing else is going on. At my home anyway.

 

[Ronnie-]

I have 25 and 1 stream of HD is iffy. My former roommate used to stream a lot and would get SO frustrated with it. Forget it in the evening when everyone around is using it, too.

There are issues outside of normal streaming limitation if 25 gives you a single bad HD stream. We swapped over to PsVue, and two to three HD streams is rock solid with my uverse 18mbps connection.

 

[ejb1980]

There are issues outside of normal streaming limitation if 25 gives you a single bad HD stream. We swapped over to PsVue, and two to three HD streams is rock solid with my uverse 18mbps connection.

What kind of issues? I think it's the primitive Adelphia lines - it's just deathly slow. I run a speed test at night and it will be between 25 and 29 but during the evening it can be as low as 14.

 

[HoTat2]

Yeah ....

The whole streaming option only thing is totally ludicrous...

For instance, in the latest data capture posted on dbstalk.com are the current number of video and audio data streams relayed by DIRECTV's satellites and other leased transponders for their USA service.

National 4K Live Channels = 2 (0)
Spot Beam 4K Live Channels =0 (0)
National HD Live Channels = 240 (2)
Spot Beam HD Live Channels =1382 (-8)
National SD MPEG4 Live Channels = 11 (0)
Spot Beam SD MPEG4 Live Channels =170 (6)
National SD MPEG2 Live Channels = 423 (0)
Spot Beam SD MPEG2 Live Channels =998 (0)
National 3D Channels = 1 (0)
Spot Beam 3D Channels =0 (0)
National Audio Channels = 84 (0)
Spot Beam Audio Channels =30 (0)

Note: The numbers in parentheses indicate changes in the channel count to that category compared the last data capture a week earlier.

Now, people somewhere in the CONUS, AK, HI, and PR to a greater or lesser degree are watching or listening to each one of those feeds at any given time.

Now can a national internet streaming solution handle all that by itself?

Can the internet backbone even sustain all that for everyone everywhere even if we all had fiber to the home (which will never happen of course)?

Don't think so ....





Sent from my LGMS550 using Tapatalk

 

[Juan]

You people don't realize how stupid and greedy at&t is

Sent from my SM-G920V using the SatelliteGuys app!

 

[Ronnie-]

What kind of issues? I think it's the primitive Adelphia lines - it's just deathly slow. I run a speed test at night and it will be between 25 and 29 but during the evening it can be as low as 14.

Even 14 should be far more than adequate for a single HD stream, heck it would be fine for two with most services. Perhaps it is a home network issue? You using wifi? Ethernet?

 

[Aridon]

3-5 years is ridiculous. However I do see them eventually moving things over the Internet more and more over time. The cost to install dishes and service is incredibly high. The future is certainly a dumb pipe and some third party box like Roku, Fire or Chromecast etc with an app that access content. DVR's can be cloud based and proven by Vue or not even offered as shown by Sling. The market will eventually settle all this out but it will take a decade or more to see any noticeable changes. People tend to hate change and there is a genuine problem in some rural areas for Internet.

All that said, how we get home internet is about to change in a big way over the next decade or so. There is going to be competition, despite the lack of changes to the home and cables coming into it. Competition is going to heat up and companies like Comcast will be forced to compete.

 

[Aridon]

the only way the satellites are worthwhile is through economies of scale. if they're getting people OFF the satellites, they're shooting their financial statements in the foot half way through a marathon.

They are sunk costs mostly at this point and already being depreciated. They don't really lose much and can reduce costs tremendously by not having to roll trucks. While I don't agree with the article and it's timeline I don't see AT&T investing much further into satellites nor do I see the future as them rolling trucks to homes and installing dishes there to get TV. Sure that will continue for a good long time but it certainly isn't going to be the future.

As usual people in the media like to jump the gun.

 

[mdram]

what is this home internet you speak of?
iirc it 15% of people cant get broadband
that is the base of directv and dish