Over the past few months, there has been growing speculation surrounding the future of DIRECTV NOW and how AT&T views the product in the present.
Today, during comments made by AT&T's head of mobility, movement, and entertainment, David Christopher, at the Bank of America Merrill Lynch conference, we got a slightly better understanding of AT&T's viewpoint on DIRECTV NOW.
In short, DIRECTV NOW is not the company's priority and it appears unlikely to change in the future.
Based on the reviews provided, it appeared that Christopher was more focused on the non-now side of DIRECTV's activity, including when it came to streaming.
Given this greater focus, Christopher was asked where is right for DIRECTV NOW today, particularly after what has become apparent a period of lost momentum for the live TV service.
In response, Christopher basically made it clear that DIRECTV NOW is what it is and a product aimed at consumers who are "more price conscious" and "don't want contracts."
Following up on the comments, Christopher also stated that AT&T is now confirming "slightly less" than before because the company is "focusing more on other elements of the portfolio".
Christopher made it clear that DIRECTV NOW is part of the wider group, and thus has its place, but the general consensus on comments seemed to us launch it now and we have followed it. There was little to no enthusiasm in the comments, and it seemed to represent AT & Ts's overview of DIRECTV NOW.
In fact, the only excitement shown was when referring to the recent price increases. On this point, Christopher stated, “We are really happy with the new products we launched, the two new price points,” adding that the goal of the price increase (and presumably lower third-party channel) was to “get more consistent content and revenue.” In other words, “so it is. More profitable. "
Arguably, these reviews are unlikely to be well received by NOW users as they are based on a bunch of reviews recently provided by the company that indicate AT&T is viewing the product as a lower product compared to other video solutions.
For example, it wasn't long ago that another AT&T CEO looked at what appeared to be a mass exodus of a DIRECTV NOW subscriber by stating that subscriber losses were all part of AT&T's plan. AT&T is currently in the process of "cleaning up the customer" for DIRECTV NOW. An exercise also designed to make the service more profitable by focusing on what AT&T refers to as "high quality customers". Basically, those who pay the most.
DIRECTV NOW operates in a highly competitive space right now, and although each of its competing services has its drawbacks, Hulu with Live TV, Sling TV and YouTube TV are all trying to speak very positively of their services. In fact, both Hulu and YouTube have been very aggressive when it comes to positive marketing of their services, while Sling TV constantly runs various promotions that offer better value than they actually do as an affordable live TV streaming option.
The moves of these other services sharply highlight how important it is to be viewed by their parent companies, highlighting just how much this view contrasts with AT&T who raised rates, minimized channel selection, and seems more than happy to speak constantly in an uninterested manner when the topic of DIRECTV comes up. NOW.
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