If you think AT&T isn’t worried about DIRECTV’s declining sub totals, the satcaster is now offering free NFL Sunday Ticket for the rest of this year and next year as well as free NBA League Pass for the 2020-21 season.

The deal, which is available to new customers who subscribe to DIRECTV’s Choice plan or above, also includes one year free of HBO Max, and three months free of the premium channels, Cinemax, Showtime, Starz and Epix.

Of course, the offer requires new customers to sign a two-year agreement which includes an early termination penalty of $20 a month for every month left in the pact if you cancel early. (For more reasons why you might want to forego doing any two-year contract for TV, click here.)

DIRECTV’s Choice plan, which includes more than 185 channels, starts at $69 a month for the first year with the second year now at $115 a month. There’s also a regional sports fee up to $9.95 a month, depending upon your market and the number of regional sports channels that come with your package.

The NFL Sunday Ticket normally starts at $293.94 while the League Pass basic sub is $199. If you add in the premium channels as well, that means DIRECTV is offering roughly $530 in programming for free to new customers.

News reports say AT&T is trying to sell DIRECTV to help eliminate company debt and allow it to focus more on streaming, including HBO Max. The satcaster has lost around six million subscribers since AT&T purchased it in 2015. But the current offer suggests AT&T, which would likely keep a stake in DIRECTV after any sale, is still committed to generating new subscribers for its beleaguered satellite TV service.

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— Phillip Swann