Items tagged with (NYSE:T)
2019 has seen the emergence of 5G wireless networks in the United States, albeit with limited reach. The top two U.S. wireless carriers -- Verizon and AT&T -- chose to first launch mmWave 5G networks in select markets, primarily for business users. While mmWave 5G offers blazing speeds topping 1Gbps in some cases, the signal can't easily penetrate walls, and coverage area is measured in blocks rather than miles. AT&T calls this 5G+. AT&T today, however, has announced its standard 5G service that will be accessible by the vast majority of Americans as the network builds out. This 5G network makes use of low-band frequencies (850MHz spectrum) and has a much broader...
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For a long time, cable and satellite TV providers had customers in a vice grip. If someone wanted to watch premium channels, it was cable/satellite TV or bust. Like so many other things, the internet changed the game, and these days an increasing number of people are cutting the cord, as they say. With more streaming options available (and on the horizon), companies like AT&T and Charter Spectrum could feel the squeeze. Netflix and Hulu are the first two that come to mind, though they're far from the only options. CBS All Access is another streaming option, as are Sling TV and YouTube. The field is expanding, too—Disney recently launched it Disney+ service, and Apple rolled out its...
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After initially launching its 5G network for business customers, AT&T is making it available for is "regular" customers. For those looking to be early adopters on AT&T's network, you can now preorder the Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ 5G with an AT&T installment plan. AT&T will offer the smartphone in two colors, including Aura Glow and Aura Black. The Galaxy Note 10+ 5G will come in a version with 256GB of storage or a version with 512GB of storage. The 256GB version will sell for $1,299 at full retail price or $43.34 monthly on the installment plan. The version with 512GB of storage isn't much more expensive at $1,399.99 full retail or $46.67 monthly. Even though the smartphone...
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AT&T is finally facing the music with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for its "Unlimited Data" practices – to the tune of $60 million -- 8 years after it first fleeced customers. The problem lies in the fact that AT&T marketed its smartphone plans as having unlimited data, but instead began to throttle customer's connections after surpassing preset data thresholds during their monthly billing cycle. According to the FTC, AT&T "misled" customers over throttling practices for unlimited data, and added that in many cases, customers found their cell service "difficult or nearly impossible to use" once the restrictions were put into place on their accounts. In some cases,...
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Who could have seen this coming? AT&T promised that after its merger with Time Warner, customers would see reduced prices for its DirecTV Now streaming service (now called AT&T TV Now). Instead, AT&T did the complete opposite and raised prices, and now it is feeling the negative consequences of its actions. AT&T reports that it currently has 20.4 million premium TV subscribers, which represents a net loss of 1,163,000 customers during Q3. AT&T TV Now stands at 1.1 million subscribers, which is down 195,000 for Q3. In total, AT&T lost over 1.3 million subscribers during Q3 2019. It should be noted that DirecTV Now/AT&T TV Now first launched on November 30th, 2016...
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If you are an AT&T customer that has been experiencing annoying problems with your voicemail lately, you’re not alone. The second-place U.S. wireless carrier says that it has identified an issue with its voicemail system that is preventing customers from retrieving their messages. This problem could range from being a minor annoyance fot customers to one that might prevent people from receiving time-sensitive information. The Verge detailed the issue, and notes that there is currently an AT&T support forums thread dedicated to the ongoing issue that is over 40 pages long at this point. According to customers, the voicemail outage has persisted for weeks and there’s no...
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AT&T is once again going directly against its promise of not raising prices following its merger with content provider Time Warner. For the second time this year, the company is jacking up prices on its AT&T TV Now service, formerly known as DirecTV Now. After raising prices by $10 across the board in March, AT&T is raising prices by another $10 for all plans. Needless to say, customers aren't exactly thrilled that AT&T has taken this mind-boggling approach to streaming, especially after the company was supposed to achieve economic synergies by combining with Time Warner. We should note that the price increases will go into effect for both new and existing...
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Streaming services like Netflix and Hulu are taking their toll on traditional TV subscription offerings, and now more than ever, consumers are cutting the cord in search of cheaper ways to be entertained. Ubiquitous broadband has made this a viable option for many people. It also could lead to AT&T selling off DirecTV, though nothing is imminent. This would be a curious shift in strategy for AT&T, which acquired DirecTV only four years ago for $49 billion. At the time, AT&T chairman and CEO Randall Stephenson said the purchase made AT&T a "fundamentally different company with a diversified set of capabilities and businesses that set us apart from the competition." "We’ll...
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AT&T is the second largest wireless carrier in the United States with millions of customers under its umbrella. But the company is now coming under fire for its decision to sell location data pertaining to its wireless customers. While AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon have all said they stopped selling phone location information to other companies, AT&T has announced that it wasn't illegal for it to sell the data. AT&T is claiming it did nothing wrong, just as the FCC has started an investigation into the practice. The telecom giant has argues that its sale of assisted GPS or A-GPS data that is used with 911 location services doesn't violate U.S. law. The reason...
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We are just at the early stages over the shift from 4G LTE wireless coverage to 5G. So far in the United States, only AT&T and Verizon have lit up their 5G mobile wireless networks, but coverage is limited to just a handful of cities and 4G LTE-trampling speeds are spotty at best. However, once 5G networks become more prevalent and start blanketing the U.S. with coverage, we may see a shift in the pricing strategy of carriers. In fact, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson remarked today during the company's earnings call that its 5G subscribers are almost entirely limited to businesses, which are using it as a LAN replacement. However, the real eyebrow-raising comments came...
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T-Mobile has announced something, and it's anyone's guess if it's an elaborate April Fool's prank kicking off a bit early or if it's just a hardcore troll of AT&T's 5G E service. At any rate, it's natural to be dubious of this but the T-Mobile Phone BoothE is also sort of plausible so here is what T-Mobile has to say about it. The T-Mobile Phone BoothE is "the next evolution in telecom" and will launch in New York City, Washington D.C., and in Seattle with more locations to come. The BoothE is a "vertical vestibule" that anyone around long enough to remember the days of public phone booths will recognize. Here's hoping that the BoothE aren't frequented by the sort of folks who can't...
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Although rumors of a price hike from AT&T for its popular DirecTV Now streaming packages were brewing earlier this week, the company confirmed the move today. After raising prices by $5 back in July 2018 shortly after its merger with Time Warner was approved (and after it promised to lower prices for customers), AT&T is delivering a double whammy today. For starters, pricing for its DirecTV Now streaming plans are increasing by a whopping $10 across the board. With the $10 increase taken into account, this is how much existing customers can expect to pay for their current DirecTV Now plans: Live a Little (65+ channels): $50/month Just Right (85+ channels): $65/month...
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When it comes to AT&T's fake 5G network -- as it calls it, 5G Evolution (5G E) -- there seems to be universal backlash against the company's marketing and the confusion that it sows with Fourth place wireless carrier Sprint has already filed a lawsuit against second-place AT&T for these deceptive practices, and now it is once again calling out the company in an open letter [PDF]. Sprint even uses AT&T own words against, as the wireless carrier acknowledged that it was trying to craft its own 5G narrative. "Every company is guilty of building a narrative of how you want the world to work. And I love the fact that we broke our industry's narrative two days ago, and they're...
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AT&T has been hit with backlash from nearly every corner of the tech sphere for its 5G Evolution (5G E) branding, which has almost universally been deemed misleading to customers. In fact, Sprint filed a lawsuit against AT&T over its 5G E campaign, stating in its filing, "AT&T has sought to gain an unfair advantage in the race to 5G by embarking on a nationwide advertising campaign to deceive consumers into believing that its existing 4G LTE Advanced network is now a 5G network." In the end, this all comes down to AT&T's customers and how they're either positively or negatively impacted by the company's fake 5G branding. But if you take AT&T's...
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