Absolutely, Positively Not a Netflix-Killer: AT&T Launches Its Own Video Subscription Service
Does the world need another streaming video subscription service? It is getting one, regardless: Here comes U-Verse Screen Pack, a $5-a-month offer from AT&T.
No need to ask whether this one is a Netflix-killer, because it clearly isn’t.
Instead, it’s comparable to Comcast’s Streampix, which is also priced at $5 month, and which doesn’t attempt to rival the large Netflix catalog of movies and TV shows.
Instead, AT&T digital video service is primarily stocked with titles from Sony and MGM. But if you’re looking for anything remotely new, you’re going to be disappointed.
I asked AT&T PR for an example of the stuff they’re going to offer, and got this response: “American Teacher, Assassin’s Code, Charlie’s Angels, Summer in Genoa, Lars and the Real Girl, Rudy, The Wedding Planner, Hotel Rwanda, Legends of the Fall, Snatch and more.”
So there you go.
Like Comcast, AT&T has the ability to sell its service nationwide, but for now is only marketing it to its existing pay-TV customers. Hard to see many folks shelling out for this, but presumably AT&T will use it as a retention device, and give it away for free while telling people they’re getting a $5-a-month value.