The No. 1 U.S. wireless carrier Verizon Communications has been buying streaming rights from television network owners ahead of a nationwide launch of an online TV service, according to people familiar with the matter.
Verizon (VZ) plans to sell a package with dozens of channels this year, the sources told Reuters.
The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The telecom giants’s move will be aimed at tackling the trend of “cord-cutting”—where customers move away from traditional cable TV to streaming services such as Netflix (NFLX) and Amazon’s Prime Video.
Verizon’s rival AT&T (T) has an online streaming television service called DirecTV Now, while U.S. satellite TV provider Dish Network in 2015 launched Sling TV, a streaming service.
The news was first reported by Bloomberg.
