Bulletins

T-Mobile launches $40 live TV service, new Android TV device

The carrier unveiled a set of new internet-based pay TV services Tuesday that will be available to consumers starting next week. The company's flagship service, dubbed TVision Live, will cost between $40 and $60 per month, and is being positioned as a way to get access to sports channels like ESPN and FS1.

Viewers not interested in sports can also subscribe to TVision Vibe, a $10 bundle that includes AMC and a set of Viacom channels, including Comedy Central and MTV. TVision services will be available on most popular streaming devices, but the company is also launching a dedicated Android TV dongle dubbed the TVision Hub that will cost $50.

T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert positioned the new services as an antidote to traditional cable. "If there ever was an industry that needed a cable overhaul," he said. He also took a swipe at other internet-based live TV services, saying: "YouTube TV and Hulu Live look a lot like cable these days."

Both YouTube TV and Hulu had to raise their prices in recent months to keep up with increasing programming costs. However, TVision Live isn't that much cheaper than some of its competitors, as some configurations can cost as much as $60 per month.

Janko Roettgers

Janko Roettgers (Twitter, Mastodon) used to be a senior reporter at Protocol, reporting on the shifting power dynamics between tech, media, and entertainment, including the impact of new technologies. Previously, Janko was Variety's first-ever technology writer in San Francisco, where he covered big tech and emerging technologies. He has reported for Gigaom, Frankfurter Rundschau, Berliner Zeitung, and ORF, among others. He has written three books on consumer cord-cutting and online music and co-edited an anthology on internet subcultures. He lives with his family in Oakland.

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