AT&T’s new online TV has contracts, hidden fees, big 2nd-year price hike

Enlarge / This TV device and remote comes with AT&T TV. (credit: AT&T)

Streaming video services often provide an escape from the hidden fees, contracts, and other pricing annoyances common in cable TV. But that's decidedly not the case with AT&T's new live-TV online service, which mirrors cable plans by charging more than the advertised price, locking customers into contracts, and socking them with big price increases after a promotional rate expires.

AT&T TV, which was available in 13 markets during its testing phase, is now available nationwide, AT&T announced today. Aside from going nationwide and its slightly lower promotional prices, the service hasn't changed much since we wrote about it last August. (Note that AT&T TV is not the same as the similarly named AT&T TV Now.)

The AT&T TV home page features several plans starting at $49.99 per month, while noting that the advertised price is good for only 12 months and does not include taxes and fees. How much are the taxes and fees? You'll have to order the service to find out. I went through nearly all of the checkout process today, entering my name, address, and credit card details, hoping to figure out the full price so I could include that detail in this article. But the online portal requires that you hit "submit order" without knowing how much taxes and fees will add to your monthly bill.

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