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CNET/Marguerite Reardon
Well, AT&T didn’t waste any time.
Fresh off of closing its acquisition of DirecTV last month, the nation’s second-largest wireless carrier unveiled its first bundle of mobile and television services. The company is offering four wireless accounts with 10GB of sharable data and television service with high-definition video and digital video recording capabilities for four televisions for a promotional rate of $200 a month for the first year. The bundle will launch on August 10.
It marks the first time a company has been able to offer a bundle of wireless and television services throughout the nation, a move made possible with the combination of AT&T’s wireless assets with DirecTV’s nationwide satellite TV service. It also comes at a time when other providers are looking to augment their services, from Cablevision’s $10 wireless service to Verizon Wireless aiming to launch a mobile video service.
“Today is the first of many planned moves to enable our customers to enjoy a premium entertainment experience almost everywhere,” said Brad Bentley, chief marketing officer of AT&T Entertainment and Internet services.
AT&T said it has begun selling DirecTV service in more than 2,000 of its retail stores, some of which already offer its U-Verse TV service, available in select states where its landline business operates.
AT&T also listed out its television packages for DirecTV and U-Verse, which range between $50 and $125. If customers sign up for both the wireless and television service, they get a $10 discount, getting them to the monthly bill of $200 (that cost doesn’t factor in the installment fees for the smartphones). AT&T said it will also offer a $300 bill credit when they buy an AT&T smartphone.
Also included in the regions where AT&T’s landline business operates is the offer to bundle Internet service, which ranges between $30 and $50.
AT&T is the latest company to try its hand at a bundle of wireless and video services. The cable companies tried to offer their own wireless service years ago, but customers weren’t interested at the time. AT&T is betting that customers have changed their mind.
