As promised, AT&T on Thursday unveiled WatchTV, a sports-free skinny bundle of more than 30 live entertainment channels.
The OTT video service, which eschews local networks as well, also features 15,000 shows and movies on-demand. Customers who subscribe to one of AT&T’s new unlimited wireless plans that are launching next week – AT&T Unlimited &More or AT&T Unlimited &More Premium – will have access to the service for free.
Others can purchase the standalone WatchTV service for $15 per month; additional details on that offer are “coming soon,” the carrier said.
The move comes shortly after the telecom giant closed on its $85 billion acquisition of Time Warner last week, and it was during testimony at the recent antitrust trial that AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson first revealed details about Watch TV.
Here’s the lineup of channels included: A&E, AMC, Animal Planet, Audience, BBC World News, BBC America, Boomerang, Cartoon Network, CNN, Discovery, Food Network, FYI, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, HGTV, History, HLN, IFC, ID, Lifetime, Lifetime Movies, OWN, Sundance TV, TBS, TCM, TLC, TNT, Tru TV, Velocity, Viceland and We tv.
AT&T said BET, Comedy Central, MTV2, Nicktoons, Teennick, and VH1 would all be added “soon after launch.”
In addition to smartphones, WatchTV will also be compatible with Roku, Apple TV, Chromecast and Safari and Chrome browsers.
Coming in at a $15 price point, AT&T’s WatchTV stands to directly compete against Philo, a $16 per month entertainment-focused OTT TV service that launched last November and now features 40 channels.
As for the wireless plans, Unlimited &More starts at $70 per month for a single line ($5 more than the current $65 cost of Unlimited Choice Enhanced plan), or $160 per month for four lines. In addition to WatchTV, this plan offers a $15 monthly credit toward AT&T’s DirecTV Now service.
The premium option starts at $80 per month for a single line and $190 for four lines. This plan gives access to WatchTV and one premium add-on with choices including HBO, Cinemax, Showtime, Starz, Amazon Music Unlimited, Pandora Premium, or VRV. Subscribers also get 15 gigabits of high-speed tethering, high definition video and a $15 monthly credit toward DirecTV, DirecTV Now or U-verse TV.
AT&T noted speeds may be slowed when the network is congested or after users hit 22 gigabytes of data each month.