AT&T continues iPhone streaming video double standard with NFL games

Live NFL Games On The iPhone This Year, But Expensive [Silicon Alley Insider]

I blogged last week about AT&T's double standard for streaming video on the iPhone, via the company's wireless network. In the U.S., AT&T is the iPhone's exclusive wireless carrier, and it appears that AT&T is expanding the treatment of streaming video apps that it approves for its iPhone customers and those that it doesn't.

Satellite TV company DirecTV has released an iPhone application called Supercast Mobile for the purpose of streaming the company's NFL Sunday Ticket games via AT&T's mobile network. Unlike SlingMedia's SlingPlayer application for the iPhone, which would allow users to stream National Football League games from a cable provider's lineup, DirecTV's Supercast mobile has been granted access to stream NFL game video via AT&T's wireless network. If you're a SlingPlayer user, AT&T has disabled your ability to stream video on their network (though you're okay to stream video if you're lucky enough to be connected to a wi-fi network).

Previously, AT&T had decided to allow Major League Baseball's At Bat application to stream video on its network while prohibiting SlingPlayer. Now, AT&T is favoring a streaming video application from a satellite company that AT&T has an economic relationship with -- they resell their service, while prohibiting cable customers from streaming their cable channels via similar protocols. In the past few weeks, AT&T has changed their mobile network's terms of service to selectively target SlingPlayer and have claimed that their network doesn't have the capacity to support streaming of cable and satellite programming. That line about the mobile network not being able to stream satellite programming was an AT&T spokesman's response to the issue last week. I suspect it may change again in light of the fact that a satellite company is promoting the ability to stream satellite programming on AT&T's wireless network via the iPhone.

While I've defended the need for network operators to reasonably manage their networks, AT&T's double standard on this issue is losing the appearance of following any reasonable standard of protecting their customers' ability to have reasonable access to their network, and has become one of favoring applications from companies that AT&T has a business relationship with over those that it doesn't.

Comments

[Mark]

I agree with you that AT&T has a double standard. You make a business relationship with them, and they open up the iPhone customers to you. If you simply want to post an iPhone app, then you are restricted to WiFi. What a way to run a business....

I love my iPhone, but I am sick of AT&T doing stuff like this.

Enjoy your time off, Michael!