The cable industry should be trembling after T-Mobile's new Un-carrier announcement
After changing the face of the wireless mobile industry, T-Mobile is now taking on cable with TVision. The carrier wants you to cut the cord and have your favorite programs streamed instead. But T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert points out that even streamers like Hulu Live or YouTube TV are beginning to look like Big Cable and have been raising prices. "Just like we changed wireless for good, now we're gonna change T.V. for good," Sievert said.
T-Mobile is taking on the cable industry with the same fervor that it had when taking on the wireless industry
T-Mobile is going to offer three different services. Priced starting at $40 per month, TVision Live is for live news and sports fans. This package includes ESPN, CNN, ABC News, Fox News, and streaming services that offer live streams of your local teams. Sievert said that cable subscribers switching to TVision Live can save up to $1,800 a year. There will be three different TVision Live packages ranging from $40 to $60 a month. TVision Vibe is for those who want to be entertained. Pricing for this service comes out to $10 a month.
TVision Vibe features 30 of the most popular entertainment streams. This includes content from Hallmark, Discovery, Paramount, Nicktoons, and more. This is the service you want, according to Sievert, if you're a fan of T.V. including any of the 90-day fiance shows. Sievert sees it as a great package for those who are already streaming from services like Netflix or for those who want to cut the cable cord and stream the same content that they are able to view from their current cable subscription. TVision Channels is for those who want to subscribe to premium services. Starting at $5.99 per month, subscribers currently can choose from Starz, Showtime, and Epix with more options on the way.
TVision can be streamed over your mobile devices such as a smartphone or a tablet. But the carrier has also unveiled its own streaming device called TVision Hub that will cost you $50. And that is a one-time cost since you are purchasing the device to keep. TVision Hub includes voice navigation and will work with almost every streaming service because it is powered by Android. The Hub connects to your television via the HDMI port.
And we should point out that all three TVision plans offer a cloud based DVR service that will store 100 hours of programming each.
The streaming service will be available to T-Mobile Customers starting on November 1st. Sprint customers will be able to sign up for TVision beginning on November 13th, and eventually, everyone will get the ability to be a TVision subscriber. And that means no more surprise fees, no more cable box rentals, and no more installation appointments.
While TVision is still a few days away from launch for T-Mobile customers, you can visit the streaming service's website, punch in your zip code, and find out exactly the programming that will be available to you in your area for TVision Live, TVision Vibe, and TVision Channels. As T-Mobile notes, "A TV package on the average cable bill costs $156—and that’s before add-on fees. With TVision services, T-Mobile customers choose smaller subscriptions and save more than half the price of cable—it’s the TV you want to watch, without hundreds of unwanted channels bloating your bill. And, with no hidden fees or exploding plans—you can say goodbye to surprises on your bill."
If you've been more than just a casual observer of the mobile industry, you've seen T-Mobile shake things up over the last few years by not just mocking its rivals, but also backing up its words with action and solving customer pain points. Now, the carrier is applying its formula to the cable industry. If past is prologue, cable is going to look a lot different in a few years thanks to the nation's second largest wireless carrier.
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