The next AT&T DirecTV Now platform will provide cloud DVR capability and will support pay-per-view and digital ad insertion, said John Stephens, AT&T senior executive vice president and chief financial officer, at a financial conference today.
DirecTV Now is the company’s over-the-top video offering launched late last year.
Next AT&T DirecTV NOW Platform
AT&T currently has 800,000 DirecTV Now subscribers, Stephens noted.
“The product is 10 months old now,” said Stephens. “The goal was to get enough customers to learn what everyone wanted.”
The new platform could find its way into other AT&T video offerings. The company previously said that it plans eventually to move all its video customers to an emerging platform– including those using traditional DirecTV and U-verse, AT&T’s IPTV offering, which the company now downplays in favor of DirecTV.
Stephens noted that 60% of DirecTV NOW customers were not AT&T customers before and are now prospects for services such as broadband. Some DirecTV Now customers are young adults living in apartment buildings where the company can offer a version of its broadband offering tailored for multi-dwelling units.
High-Speed Broadband
Stephens confirmed that AT&T high-speed broadband investment plans will bring the total number of locations served to 50 million through a combination of fiber-to-the-premises, fiber-to-the-node and wireless solutions. That number includes existing and new builds and includes business locations.
Just yesterday, researchers at Moffett Nathanson explored the impact those plans will have on broadband market share, arguing that they will help turn the tide for telcos, which have been losing market share to cable in recent years.
Stephens made his comments at the Wells Fargo Securities Media & Telecom Conference, which was also webcast.
