Verizon Communications reported today that it plans to launch a web streaming service that will enable users to stream movies and television shows over the web. This would rival the current offerings of competitors such as Netflix and Amazon, as well as traditional cable providers. Verizon is in talks with prospective programmers and plans to introduce the new product in markets outside of its current FIOS market. People familiar with the plans believe that the amount of programming will be limited in scope and thus is unlikely to have an immediate impact on cable sales.
This move should definitely add to the uneasiness of pay TV providers who fear that their customers will cut the coaxial cord for cheaper online or over-the-top offerings. Last month, Google also announced that they were pondering a pay TV service that would deliver content over the internet. It will be interesting to watch the evolution of the pay TV business as all of the signs are pointing towards an evolution that is similar to that the music industry: a disintermediation of not only cable content from traditional cable providers but also of content itself.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/06/us-verizon-paytv-idUSTRE7B527L20111206
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