AT&T announced its new WatchTV live-streaming service last week, and it has now started the rollout to select Apple devices.
WatchTV is now available on fourth-generation and fifth-generation Apple TVs, as well as on iOS. The service is aggressively priced, offering a cheaper alternative to its DirecTV service.
AT&T WatchTV Price And Availability
AT&T's new WatchTV is aggressively priced at $15 per month, but it's available as a free add-on for customers on the new AT&T "Unlimited & More" and "Unlimited & More Premium" plans.
The new WatchTV service is the lovechild of AT&T's $85 billion Time Warner affair, and it offers more than 30 different channels. Local sports channels are not on the menu, which could be one of the factors allowing the service to be so aggressively priced.
A number of Time Warner properties are included, such as Cartoon Network, TBS, Turner Classic Movies, or CNN. Other channels include BBC World News, BBC America, AMC, and more.
"We were the first wireless provider to bring entertainment and unlimited data together, and, once again, we're redefining what that means," said David Christopher, AT&T's president of Mobility and Entertainment, upon announcing the service last week.
"This is no longer about including one channel or service with your wireless plan. This is an incredible lineup of content that delivers more of what you care about - over 30 live TV channels and more than 15,000 TV shows and movies on demand, as well as premium movie channels, music streaming with more to come!"
Those 15,000 titles available on demand are nothing to scoff at, but it's worth pointing out that AT&T's WatchTV doesn't currently offer any DVR functionality, which may be a drawback for some.
WatchTV Not Replacing DirecTV Now
AT&T's new WatchTV service doesn't arrive as a replacement for DirecTV Now by any means. Instead, it comes as an even skinnier bundle of content, designed for customers who just want cheap access to a bunch of channels that don't include sports. AT&T will add more networks and channels soon, but for now, the list tops out at exactly 31 channels.
At just $15 per month, however, WatchTV is now the cheapest live-streaming TV service currently available on the market, undercutting the $20-per-month Sling TV service from Dish. It even undercuts Philo, which launched back in April at $16 per month.
As the market is heating up and the number of so-called cord-cutters increases, more attractive streaming options are popping up with lower prices than ever. WatchTV supports a number of platforms beyond tvOS and iOS, including Android, Chromecast, FireTV, or web browsers.
