T-Mobile has officially completed its acquisition of Layer3 TV and has a new television team to work on and launch the Un-Carrier’s latest service.
In mid-December, T-Mobile took the mobile industry by storm when it announced that it’d be acquiring television provider Layer3 TV as part of a new effort to launch its own Internet-based live TV streaming service. Now, in late January, that acquisition has been completed.
The over 200 employees from Layer 3 TV are officially working within T-Mobile’s new television team that’s being led by Layer3 TV’s CEO Jeff Binder. Furthermore, an executive leadership team with individuals formally working at Comcast and Time Warner Cable will also be joining Binder and the other Layer3 TV workers.
There’s still quite a bit that we don’t know about T-Mobile’s live TV service, but the completion of the Layer3 TV acquisition means that it’s now time for the Un-Carrier to focus on building its content offering, user interface, pricing, etc.
T-Mobile is entering a market of stiff competition.
I’ve been hooked on the idea of Internet-powered live TV services ever since Sling TV came out in early 2015, and I’ve been subscribed to just about every platform out there at one point or another. Sling TV’s great for getting a decent mix of channels for just $20/month, PlayStation Vue is one of the few that offers local channels in my area, DirecTV Now is alright and a really good deal for AT&T subscribers, YouTube TV is very polished but a tad too pricey, and Philo is almost perfect for those that don’t care about sports.
What can T-Mobile do differently that we haven’t seen already? That’s what remains to be seen. We’ll likely get competitive pricing for T-Mobile wireless subscribers, and it’s also been confirmed that AT&T and Verizon customers will be able to sign up for the service with exclusive offers of their own. Affordable pricing is only going to help T-Mobile, and with it being so easy to switch back and forth between these services, undercutting the competition might be T-Mobile’s key to victory.
When T-Mobile’s TV service launches, what monthly pricing and channel packages would you like to see?
YouTube TV already has 300,000 users less than a year after launch
