Altice USA has debuted a 4K-capable Android TV-based box and is handing it out for free to its 1-gig broadband-only customers.
Branded "Optimum Stream" or "Suddenlink Stream," depending on what regional distinction of Altice's U.S. cable operation you take, the box will come with popular pre-selected apps for "easy setup": Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus, HBO Max, Peacock, and Discovery Plus.
Ostensibly, however, the Android TV Operator Tier device should allow users to download whatever they can find in the Google Play Store.
The device will also come loaded with the "Stream" app, which includes more than 50 live-stream channels--News 12, i24NEWS and Cheddar News, children’s entertainment from Kabillion, lifestyle entertainment from Bon Appetit, Wired, and Reelz, and sports coverage from Stadium, among the bounty.
Altice USA finished the first quarter with just over 2.9 million traditional pay TV customers remaining.
For its part, Comcast began offering its broadband-only users its X1-based "Xfinity Flex" device for free back in 2019, a strategy intended to deliver video to customers no longer interested in full linear TV service.
