It’s been building the component pieces for a while now, but we’ve apparently seen the name of Verizon’s upcoming over-the-top video platform. Allegedly called Go90, (a reference to rotating a phone 90° to watch video), the leaks obtained from a pre-launch web page suggest that the platform will feature exclusive content for Verizon customers too. It will also be heavily reliant on WiFi and LTE connections to deliver a differentiated experience.
The website, which has since been taken down, said that iOS and Android apps would be free to download, with the platform offering “live music, exclusive events, best of web content, sports and prime time TV. Users will be able to watch full length shows and short highlights, all for free”.
According to Bloomberg, the service will be pushed to Verizon subscribers who opt-in for beta testing, ahead of an official launch within eight weeks. By the sounds of the prospective line-up, Verizon is hoping to build a one-stop shop for its 100m+ customers, which would provide all their video needs.
On another web page, Verizon highlighted the importance of wireless-connected devices like tablets to its experience, saying: “We didn’t want to mimic TV-that’s just an appliance you rearrange your living room around. Instead, we wanted to create a mobile-first, video-based app that can keep up with you and your on-the-go social life. One that features completely immersive live and on-demand content, no matter where you are or where you’re going. No cord required.”
Alongside a growing network of WiFi hotspots to support the potential mass consumption of Go90, supported by the assets acquired when Verizon bought the remnants of Intel’s failed OnCue project, Verizon has slowly been signing content deals to support what looked like an inevitable push into mobile-first video.
To date, Verizon has signed deals with ESPN, CBS Sports, Viacom, Scripps Interactive Networks and the NFL via its mobile app deal. But outside of the more traditional pay TV players, the carrier has also signed deals with Dreamworks, Vice Media and YouTube multi-channel network (MCN) AwesomenessTV.
Verizon also has its FiOS deals to leverage, adding regional content (a safe bet given retransmission consent) to the Go90 offering. The pre-launch beta website also revealed apparent deals with Victorious, GoPro and Vevo. It has also announced that HBO Now will be shortly coming to its platform, and will enable all Verizon Wireless customers to take a 30-day free trial.
The first take that everyone had on the signing of HBO Now with Verizon Wireless was that it was just another deal like say Cablevision or Apple, but it doesn’t appear to be that simple.
The statement made this week also made it clear that some of the underlying content from HBO would also be included in its planned OTT service when it comes out. This starts to make the long planning process and the money that Verizon has buried into this project begin to look ominous. If you can subscribe to Game of Thrones alone for $6 a month, instead of HBO Now for $15, quite a few million might do it, so it will depend upon which content is included and what it sells for.
Specifically Verizon talked about going to more than 100m Verizon Wireless customers, and rumor has added to that the idea that all of them are going to get this service – initially at least – for free. An advertising version of the product will be forthcoming, but that’s not to say that there won’t be an extra payment for a version of the service without adverts. This is especially interesting given the number of tablets that Verizon is shipping each quarter currently, because tethered tablets, that can mostly use WiFi at home, would make for a hell of a viewing system.
HBO Now in the meantime is available immediately to all Verizon broadband customers, including FiOS on a 30-day free trial.
Verizon’s most recent acquisition, of AOL for $4.4bn, is perhaps the best proof of Verizon’s intent to make a serious play at a video platform. AOL was renowned for its advertising technology, and in an earnings call, Verizon CFO Fran Shammo revealed that AOL CEO Tim Armstrong and Verizon EVP Marni Walden would be leading up the OTT project. This week saw Shammo confirm that the content acquired in the AOL deal, including Tech Crunch and Huffington Post, would be included in the platform.
The OTT platform comes as IPTV additions in the quarter only added 4,000 new subscribers between the two largest providers. Verizon added 26,000 FiOS customers in Q2, but AT&T’s U-verse lost 22,000. In comparison, Q2 2013 saw the two add 373,000 IPTV subs, and the slowdown might be a sign of the penetration of mobile devices.