Intel is planning to sell its yet-to-be-launched online pay-TV service OnCue for $500 million, Bloomberg reported on Monday. The company initially planned to launch the service by the year-end, but ironically now, it sees the project as a "distraction" and is seeking to secure a sale within the same time frame.
Samsung Electronics and Liberty Global seem to be interested in the deal but the report names Verizon as one of the potential buyers. The company is already in the pay TV business and with OnCue, it can expand the business beyond the current footprint. The company is said to be already in talks with content providers about terms for a streaming TV service. Both Intel and Verizon reps have declined to comment.
OnCue was officially announced in February this year and was supposed to compete directly with cable companies by providing live TV, streaming and on-demand content over a high speed internet connection. Intel had already developed servers, set-top-boxes and applications for smartphones and tablets to test the service but as the company faced problems in securing content deals, the project never went off the ground. The efforts further slowed down under Intel's new CEO, Brian M. Krzanich, who has been focused on strengthening the company's presence in the mobile market instead.
Last month, similar news made the rounds and the latest source throw some additional weight behind rumors.
