re: U-verse vs direct tv picture quality

I had DirecTV and currently have Uverse. I think image quality on DirecTV is better.

UVerse is fine, I like it better than I ever liked Comcast (but it's been a while). Obviously there is no lag like DirecTV, but I don't think the picture is quite as good. I only really notice in sports.

I don't understand AT&T's intention with Uverse. As someone else noted, DirecTV Now doesn't work well enough to replace Uverse. But obviously AT&T is pushing people off of Uverse (although that seems to have slowed over the last year).

What about the thousands of people who can't get DirecTV? What's the alternative?