T-Mobile to Delay Streaming TV Service Until 2019

In late 2017, T-Mobile announced plans for a "disruptive" internet TV service, set to launch at some point in 2018. T-Mobile isn't going to make that release date, however, with the rollout pushed back until 2019.

According to Bloomberg, T-Mobile is delaying its TV service because the "project proved much more complex than expected."

T-Mobile executives faced the difficult choice of either offering a garden-variety streaming platform - a service that lets customers watch cable channels and other content online - or waiting until next year to deliver a more groundbreaking product, the people said.

When the project was announced, T-Mobile CEO John Legere made big promises about how it would disrupt the TV industry, and the high bar set by the company has made it difficult to complete the project on time.

T-Mobile's TV service is built in part on its acquisition of Layer3 TV, and while John Legere has promised to "fix the pain points and bring real choice to consumers," few details about the service are available at this time.

The carrier has promised to offer solutions to issues like lengthy contracts, increasing monthly bill costs, confusing bundles, and outdated user interfaces. 2019 is the prospective launch date for the service at this time, but Bloomberg's sources warned that plans could change.