T AT&T Inc

By Thomas Gryta and Shalini Ramachandran 

AT&T Inc. said its internet-based television service DirecTV Now will go on sale this week and cost between $35 and $70 a month based on the package of channels that customers select.

The service, which will be available Wednesday, offers four tiers of channels that are delivered to web browsers, mobile phones and streaming devices like Amazon's Fire TV stick or the Apple TV. The smallest package will include more than 60 channels, while the biggest will have more than 120.

"This is foundation of how we are going to do things in the future," said John Stankey, chief executive of AT&T's entertainment group, at an event in New York Monday. The company became the country's largest pay television provider last year with its almost $50 billion acquisition of DirecTV. AT&T will also continue to sell its traditional satellite DirecTV service.

For a limited time, AT&T is selling a DirecTV Now package of more than 100 channels, usually priced $60 a month, for $35 a month. Streaming customers can pay an extra $5 a month to add premium movie channels HBO or Cinemax.

The details of the service have been a longtime coming. AT&T said almost eight months ago that it would launch the over-the-top version of DirecTV. At the time, it said it would also sell a mobile-only version and a free ad-supported service.

Streaming video to televisions and mobile devices -- eliminating the need for a satellite dish, cable box or annual contract -- is attracting plenty of competition. But unlike Netflix or Hulu, DirecTV Now is intended to provide a full cablelike lineup for households.

Write to Thomas Gryta at thomas.gryta@wsj.com and Shalini Ramachandran at shalini.ramachandran@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 28, 2016 17:06 ET (22:06 GMT)

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