Want Netflix? T-Mobile is willing to foot the bill.
Today the Un-carrier announced its latest move to bring content to consumers and lure in subscribers – by paying for unlimited family plan customers’ Netflix bill.
Starting Sept. 12 the Un-carrier will offer free standard Netflix subscriptions to new and current customers who have at least two T-Mobile One unlimited data plans. Customers with promotional plans like T-Mobile One Unlimited 55+, or two lines for $100, must upgrade to a T-Mobile One family plan to be eligible.
Customers can go on the T-Mobile app and link their Netflix account to it, the charge and credit for a $9.99 plan will show up on the phone bill. If customers have or want the premium Netflix subscription, they pay an additional $2 dollars on their wireless bill.
The move shows further how mobile and content are colliding, with AT&T seeking to buy Time Warner, and bundling free HBO for select higher-end wireless customer and DirecTV Now subscribers. Verizon for its part bought out Yahoo last year, and has invested in its own mobile video service called Go90.
T-Mobile CEO John Legere took a jab at the Un-carrier’s competitors saying in a statement, “The future of mobile entertainment is not about bolting a satellite dish to the side of your house or resuscitating faded 90s dotcoms. The future is mobile, over-the-top, and unlimited.”
Don’t expect other carriers to be offering the same, as Legere noted on a press conference call that T-Mobile struck an exclusive long-term relationship with Netflix.
“It’s a great deal for our customers,” he says.
Netflix is one of the biggest streaming video services, boasting 104 million subscribers globally and nearly 52 million in the United States. It’s yet to be seen how many this new agreement will tack on, but BTIG analyst Walter Piecyk says that with T-Mobile now footing the monthly bill, “the risk of seasonal churn is reduced and hence higher revenue growth for Netflix is clear.”
“The marketing dollars that T-Mobile will spend promoting this offer will also be a clear benefit to cementing Netflix as one necessary source of content in the future of consumer consumption,” Piecyk adds.
Though terms of the deal were not disclosed, T-Mobile Chief Operating Officer Mike Sievert acknowledged that the move is “a big investment” for the Un-carrier, though hinted that Netflix gave some sort of discount. He said that the investment will work out for T-Mobile in terms of customer and revenue growth.