Promising to shake up the national paid-TV market with a “disruptive new TV service” in 2018, T-Mobile CEO John Legere on Wednesday announced that the wireless provider was buying out Denver-based, streaming-video startup Layer3 TV.
Layer3 TV operates in many, but not all, U.S. cable markets, selling HD cable service and internet access, either a la carte or bundled.
In light of the acquisition, T-Mobile, the nation’s third-largest wireless provider, may find itself in a stronger position against AT&T, which bought up DirecTV in 2015 and offers bundled TV service for subscribers who purchase unlimited data phone plans.
“People love their TV, but they hate their TV providers,” Mr. Legere said in a statement, CNBC reported.
“And worse, they have no real choice but to simply take it,” he added, presenting T-Mobile as positioned to change all that.
“Together with T-Mobile, we’re going to ditch everything you hate about cable and make everything you love about TV better,” said Layer3 TV CEO Jeff Binder, in a news release posted both on his and T-Mobile’s official websites.
While financial details pertaining to the deal weren’t disclosed, Variety magazine reported that 4-year-old Layer3 TV “had raised $72 million in funding to date.”
• Ken Shepherd can be reached at kshepherd@washingtontimes.com.
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