{"id":341730,"date":"2017-05-24T02:44:09","date_gmt":"2017-05-23T18:44:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/techcrunch.com\/?p=1494772"},"modified":"2017-05-24T02:44:09","modified_gmt":"2017-05-23T18:44:09","slug":"verizon-ceo-confirms-companys-plan-to-launch-a-streaming-tv-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/people.utm.my\/asmawisham\/verizon-ceo-confirms-companys-plan-to-launch-a-streaming-tv-service\/","title":{"rendered":"Verizon CEO confirms company\u2019s plan to launch a streaming TV service"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Verizon CEO\u00a0Lowell McAdam confirmed the company\u2019s plans to launch an over-the-top streaming service later this year, according to a report from Variety<\/a>, citing remarks the CEO made at a telecom conference in Boston this week. Verizon (which owns TechCrunch parent company AOL), will use the combined platform\u00a0of AOL and Yahoo \u2013 and their 1.3 billion users \u2013 to test the new platform, McAdam said.<\/p>\n

The company expects to close on its acquisition<\/a> of Yahoo mid-June, so the over-the-top service could arrive any time after that.<\/p>\n

McAdam\u2019s statements largely confirms an earlier report from Bloomberg<\/a>\u00a0which disclosed Verizon\u2019s plans to enter the over-the-top live TV market with a package of dozens of channels to\u00a0be sold separately from its FiOS home TV\u00a0offering.<\/p>\n

The service will also be separate from Verizon\u2019s existing streaming video product go90,\u00a0which has been struggling to succeed as an entertainment business<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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The go90 service\u00a0has been declared dead<\/a>\u00a0by at least one\u00a0industry analyst; its\u00a0unit saw large layoffs<\/a>\u00a0at the beginning of the year, and the product has been rebooted<\/a>. Despite the hype building up to its launch back in fall 2015,\u00a0go90 has not been able to pull in the user numbers it needs to be a viable property, nor has it\u00a0produced original video hits that could get it on the map alongside the industry\u2019s big names, like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon.<\/p>\n

Verizon has to decide if it\u2019s worth sinking more money into making go90 work,\u00a0at this point, or scrap it.<\/p>\n

But the\u00a0interesting thing about Verizon entering the over-the-top market with its own live TV service is that it could become a home to go90\u2019s original video output, if the company did want to shut down the go90 app. That is, instead of trying to make go90 a brand that can stand on its own, Verizon \u2013 if it was smart \u2013 could use the content that\u2019s languishing over in that app, unviewed, to flesh out its live TV offering.<\/p>\n

That would give the company\u00a0an advantage in a crowded market of streaming TV rivals. For example, it would help it fight against Dish\u2019s Sling TV and Sony\u2019s PlayStation Vue, which both offer access to live TV and select on-demand programming from broadcasters, but don\u2019t invest in originals. (Vue\u2019s first and only experiment<\/a> with originals wrapped last year).<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Verizon\u2019s live TV service will also have to compete against Hulu, which does<\/em> have its own original lineup \u2013 and one that\u2019s now\u00a0breaking through with its first truly big hit, \u201cThe Handmaid\u2019s Tale.\u201d<\/p>\n

YouTube TV, too, will be a competitor to whatever Verizon introduces. And its originals (via subscription product YouTube Red) are meant to appeal to a younger demographic, similar to go90.<\/p>\n

Go90 today features content from AwesomenessTV \u2013 a company Verizon bought a 24.5 percent stake in \u2013 and which has more recently\u00a0scrapped plans<\/a> for its own standalone streaming product. The service also has shows from Rooster Teeth,\u00a0BuzzFeed, Funny Or Die, CollegeHumor, Smosh, VICE, Elite Daily, Disney\u2019s Maker Studios, and others. Go90 and other Verizon properties can also stream NFL football games, thanks to its $21 million rights deal<\/a>.<\/p>\n

McAdam\u2019s statements didn\u2019t offer much in terms of what Verizon has in store for its live TV service, only that it\u2019s on the way. He did, however, hint at Verizon\u2019s openness to M&A\u00a0opportunities<\/a>, noted Variety. This is in\u00a0reference to\u00a0remarks<\/a>\u00a0he made in April, saying that the company would consider mergers with Disney, Comcast or CBS, if the possibilities arose.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll say this about M&A: There\u2019s a lot more energy on Wall Street and in the media than there is in most businesses at this point,\u201d McAdam said, according<\/a> to Variety\u2019s report. \u201cIf there were an opportunity to accelerate the strategy, you should look at that.\u201d<\/p>\n

We could be a significant player for delivering broadband and video over-the-top,\u201d the CEO also said.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

Featured Image: David Ramos\/Getty Images<\/small><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\"\" Verizon CEO\u00a0Lowell McAdam confirmed the company’s plans to launch an over-the-top streaming service later this year, according to a report from Variety, citing remarks the CEO made at a telecom conference in Boston this week. Verizon (which owns TechCrunch parent company AOL), will use the combined platform\u00a0of AOL and Yahoo – and their 1.3 billion users – to test the new… Read More<\/a><\/p>\n

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