Verizon’s Internet-based television service could launch as early as mid-2015 according to CEO Lowell McAdam. The admission, which came during a recent speaking engagement at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia conference in New York, is a glimmer of hope for those that have been clamoring for a la carte service.
McAdam said his company hopes to offer users a bundle with all of the major broadcasting partners (ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX) as well as a collection of “custom channels.”
The executive added that Verizon has been holding discussions with some of the big content providers, some of the same providers that were once fearful of moving away from lucrative cable and satellite TV bundles. McAdam said that over the last six months to a year, the dialogue with providers has changed dramatically and that there’s no doubt in his mind that they can make it a win-win.
The remarks finally shed some light on what the wireless company plans to do with the technology it acquired from Intel earlier this year. If you recall, Verizon purchased Intel’s Internet television venture – OnCue – for an estimated $500 million. The purchase included the intellectual property associated with the program as well as the employees that were working in that division.
Intel had spent several years working on the project but much like Apple, he was unable to secure content licensing deals. Verizon, on the other hand, already has content tie-ins with providers under its FiOS cable service which would no doubt make negotiations a bit easier.
https://www.techspot.com/news/58040-verizon-expects-to-launch-internet-tv-service-by-mid-2015.html
