• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, January 5, 2010

AT&T plans to begin offering local ad insertion opportunities for its U-verse TV service this year, a top company executive said Tuesday. The real estate will resemble what cable operators offer advertisers for local spots on cable networks they carry.

For U-verse, marketers apparently would be able to thread ads into homes in the approximate 120 markets in 21 states that the telco TV services. Large markets include Houston and Atlanta.

John Stankey, president/CEO of AT&T Operations, said advertisers will have "more targeted and more focused" opportunities.

U-verse has about 20 million homes passed, which Stankey, speaking at a Citi investor event, said would increase to 30 million by the end of 2011.

Some 2 million homes currently subscribe to U-verse TV service.

New services for U-verse customers coming in 2010 include caller ID or voicemail notification on the screen and multi-view opportunities for sportscasts, where a user can select a particular camera angle.

Stankey said U-verse is nearly a $2 billion business now and is propelling bundled sales, where AT&T can sell customers packages that also include broadband (there is a U-verse offering); wireless; and traditional phone service. AT&T has said that more than 75% of U-verse customers subscribe to a triple- or quad-play.

Separately, Stankey declined to comment on whether AT&T may extend its exclusive deal to offer the Apple iPhone, saying questions are better directed at Apple. But he said the company believes it can compete however things play out, saying a leading customer experience trumps exclusivity.

There have been complaints that AT&T wireless service is spotty, notably in large markets like New York and San Francisco. Stankey said those are being addressed -- although there are a range of issues to be dealt with, which are different in each area.

In New York, capacity is challenged, among other hurdles, and Stankey did say: "I thought by the time we closed 2009, we'd be in a better place in New York City than we were."