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AT&T Looking To Sell DirecTV?

One can only hope! DirecTV has been going down the dumper ever since AT&T bought them out. Outages that are not weather-related, boxes that overheat, channels that go blank for no reason, and I have to cycle the Channel Up/Down buttons to get them back. If I call them, they want a new 2-year deal when I want to make changes. Etc., etc., etc.

I refuse to sign anything with them from this point forward, which means they can't extend my contract under Arizona law without a written agreement (verbal contracts are not valid here).
 
KeithE4 said:
One can only hope! DirecTV has been going down the dumper ever since AT&T bought them out. Outages that are not weather-related, boxes that overheat, channels that go blank for no reason, and I have to cycle the Channel Up/Down buttons to get them back. If I call them, they want a new 2-year deal when I want to make changes. Etc., etc., etc.
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That would be discouraging news (if I was planning on subscribing to cable TV). I began with DISH many years ago then switched to DirecTV due to lower costs and more of the programming I was interested in watching (mostly sports). That was a long time ago though. It finally occurred to me I wasn't watching cable very much so dumped it all and haven't been back (although it has occurred to me that perhaps having the local OTA stuff would have been more satisfying than the constant jerk-off that trying to receive local stations via antenna has been since the digital debacle).

About one month ago I changed my internet plan with Cox for a higher speed and they tossed in an app (Contour I think it is called) that allows me to watch the basic TV channels + HBO from my PC. The resolution is not as good as on my big screen and trying to watch it through a VPN is sometimes problematical but it does fulfill the very few programs I watch. At least it doesn't pixelate like crazy when the sun reaches a certain point in the sky. HBO is as useless as I remember it from the 80's although I did re-watch "The Newsroom" last week and that was worth the price of admission. I actually spend much more time on Youtube than I do on TV. Who wouldda thunk it?
 
I was against AT&T from buying Direct TV the government shouldn't have approved the deal by the DOJ. AT&T is too big and is back to the 1980 levels when the government disbands AT&T they need to do it again the courts were wrong to let AT&T to buy Time Warner, I have never had Sat TV Direct TV or Dish either.
 
Megatron said:
I was against AT&T from buying Direct TV the government shouldn't have approved the deal by the DOJ.
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They are going to have a tough time getting rid of it. Dish will likely end up with it, but they'll likely pay less than they would have a few years ago.
 
One big problem they have is that they can't offer a bundle price with internet service in most areas.

I had DirecTV until my internet contract with Verizon ran out. My price on the internet went up and DirecTV raised their prices at about the same time. Made taking the bundle deal from Verizon a no-brainer, and they really had no way to counter it since they don't offer broadband where I live.
 
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FreddyE1977 said:
One big problem they have is that they can't offer a bundle price with internet service in most areas.
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Internet service is one of the areas where they're investing money. In fact they've used their muscle to prevent Google Fiber from making headway in some areas.
 
Funny how they're only seriously considering this after that activist investor who, according to Big A has no influence, pushed for the move.

The biggest hurdle is finding a buyer as a sale to Dish is unlikely. This company is unlikely to get any kind of favorable treatment from DoJ to green light a sale to Dish which would be the only logical buyer, a pairing of which would raise realistic antitrust concerns.

AT&T would simply go back to U-Verse as their main mode of distribution.
 
And more disputes than any other provider. Way to go AT&T. What used to be a genuine bonus to having television is now a waste of money. Why should I throw $100 a month in your face knowing I can't get TWO of the Big 4 because of your little hissy fits with Northwest Broadcasting and Cowles?!
 
umfan said:
Funny how they're only seriously considering this after that activist investor who, according to Big A has no influence, pushed for the move.

The biggest hurdle is finding a buyer as a sale to Dish is unlikely. This company is unlikely to get any kind of favorable treatment from DoJ to green light a sale to Dish which would be the only logical buyer, a pairing of which would raise realistic antitrust concerns.

AT&T would simply go back to U-Verse as their main mode of distribution.
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Actually AT&T is not promoting U-Verse as much now. They're pushing AT&T TV, which is on a streaming box although it's mostly the same package as DirecTV, and have changed DirecTV Now to AT&T TV Now, so this could be a factor in eventually selling off DirecTV. I had considered DriecTV Now and the new streaming option at one time but I've decided against them since they've become as bad as Dish about contract disputes.
 
TheBigA said:
Your issue is with the station owners who keep raising carriage fees. Or are you OK with them just passing through fee increases?
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In most cases BOTH sides are equally greedy and guilty of allowing things to get to the point of channels being dropped. Like I've said before Dish and AT&T are the worst offenders in this and I've made a decision not to do business with them because of it. Yes it happens with Spectrum but not as bad and I'll stay with them before I go to DIsh or AT&T.

One other thought: I wonder how AT&T would react if fed up customers of DirecTV started dropping their phone service as well. (PS I have Verizon.)
 
anotherguy said:
I won't say never and they're not in my area, but I haven't heard about their being in any disputes, or at least not regularly.
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That's because they're not available everywhere, but if you do a search, you'll find FIOS disputes with Disney and even The Weather Channel!
 
They probably can. I doubt any other provider would pay what DirecTV has been paying for it, and the service does provide the NFL with a reliable source of revenue. The key sticking point is that the NFL would be loath to take less for anything as it would be seized upon that the value of their product is in decline. On the other side, a LOT of DirecTV subscriptions are the direct result of Sunday Ticket and, if AT&T drops it, it'll only exacerbate defections from DirecTV.

I think they'll come to terms, with an announced price that shows a nominal increase from the current price, but with some type of rebate scheme baked into the fine print.
 
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