MobiTV creator Idetic Inc. will provide content and operations for one of the new channels available through Sprint PCS Vision Multimedia Services, which the carrier launched late last Friday.
Sprint TV, the “basic cable” channel of the Sprint service, will feature programming from NBC News, ABC News Now, Fox Sports and The Weather Channel. Sprint TV is included in Sprint’s new service, which is offered to the carrier’s Vision customers for $10 a month; other channels are available for an additional $4 to $5 each per month.
Since launching MobiTV last year, which offers real-time TV services, Sprint has been the lone carrier to offer the service. Sprint’s new service will be on-demand, as opposed to a live broadcast, and will offer more than 600 audio and video clips daily.
Idetic Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Phillip Alvelda said he doesn’t believe the new service will detract from MobiTV’s viewership.
“They’re two very different usage models,” Alvelda said of the two services. “They kind of meet different needs. It’s the difference between watching the capture of Saddam Hussein live vs. the next day, wanting to go back to the archives and see what happened.”
Sprint’s new MMS is available only on the new Samsung MM-A700, which retails for $400, or $250 after rebate with a two-year agreement.
Alvelda said Idetic’s participation in the new offering allows the company to provide more video services to carriers in the future.
“Part of the reason we’re participating in this product launch is that we want to see which one does better,” he said. “This is kind of a next generation of services.”
