Tech

AT&T will launch a Netflix rival next year

Key Points
  • The new service, anchored by HBO as the lead brand, will host all of WarnerMedia's other properties, including movie and TV franchises, and follows AT&T's purchase of Time Warner earlier this year.
  • AT&T already offers a handful of streaming services.
  • The service will launch in the fourth quarter of 2019.
WarnerMedia CEO John Stankey on HBO, CNN, and company growth
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WarnerMedia CEO John Stankey on HBO, CNN, and company growth

AT&T will launch a streaming service to rival Netflix next year, the company said Wednesday.

The new service, anchored by HBO as the lead brand, will host all of WarnerMedia's other properties, including movie and TV franchises, and follows AT&T's purchase of Time Warner earlier this year. AT&T, which also owns DirecTV, has been broadening its advertising and media offerings since closing the deal.

"Around HBO will come a great library of additional content from not only the WarnerMedia properties but also some selective third-party licensed content," WarnerMedia CEO John Stankey said during an on-stage interview at Vanity Fair's New Establishment Summit on Wednesday.

"And the driver behind this is really straightforward. We know there's customers who love to engage with our content — we've got a great history of building it — much of which they can't get in one place," he said.

AT&T already offers a handful of streaming services. DirecTV Now is a cable replacement that lets users stream live TV. HBO Go is a streaming version of HBO that requires a cable login. HBO Now is a stand-alone streaming service for HBO content. The new service, AT&T said, will be a stand-alone streaming service and host content from HBO as well as other WarnerMedia properties.

The company didn't name specific properties to be included in the service, but it owns movie studio Warner Bros. and franchises like "Batman," "Harry Potter," and shows on networks like CNN, TNT and TBS.

Stankey said the new platform will come at a "compelling price point" but declined to say exactly how much it would cost. The service will launch in the fourth quarter of 2019.

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