AT&T’s Cingular to launch mobile TV late this year using MediaFLO

Qualcomm Inc.’s MediaFLO USA Inc. mobile TV business racked up another major customer win as AT&T Inc.’s Cingular Wireless L.L.C., the nation’s largest wireless carrier, announced it expects to introduce commercial mobile TV services in “late 2007” using the MediaFLO network. Details of the deal, including specifics on financial terms and the service itself, were not disclosed.
“MediaFLO USA’s service will add another dimension to our robust offering by delivering a TV-quality mobile media experience that perfectly complements our existing voice and multimedia services,” said Marc Lefar, chief marketing officer for AT&T’s wireless unit. “We look forward to bringing our subscribers a compelling, differentiated service and the innovative devices for which AT&T is known.”
In the announcement, Cingular promised its mobile TV service would include “advanced features MediaFLO USA expects to launch in the second half of 2007. Designed to create a unique consumer experience, these features include MediaFLO USA’s multicast video clip distribution service; a datacasting application for real-time information and entertainment; and audio services.”
Cingular did not offer additional specifics.
The news comes as Verizon Wireless, the nation’s No. 2 wireless carrier, gears up to launch commercial mobile TV services using the MediaFLO network. The carrier said it would commercially launch the offering sometime in the first quarter, which ends March 31.
Although Verizon Wireless has not yet disclosed the pricing for its service, the carrier in January announced it will offer channels from CBS, Comedy Central, Fox, MTV, NBC News, NBC Entertainment and Nickelodeon, with more channels to be introduced in the future. Since Verizon Wireless and Cingular will be using the same network-MediaFLO-to offer mobile TV services, it’s likely that Cingular’s channel lineup will be similar to Verizon’s.
Verizon Wireless also in January unveiled two handsets for the service, one each from LG Electronics Co. Ltd. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
Cingular’s deal with Qualcomm for mobile TV is notable for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the timing of the announcement. Today is the first day of the 3GSM World Congress trade show in Barcelona, Spain, and Qualcomm is strongly pushing its MediaFLO technology to European carriers.
As for the announcement, the agreement puts additional pressure on the rest of the major carriers in the U.S. wireless marketplace. Sprint Nextel Corp. and T-Mobile USA Inc. are each trialing mobile TV services, and Cingular’s announcement could induce them to speed their mobile TV plans. Sprint Nextel is trialing Qualcomm’s MediaFLO offering, while T-Mobile USA has been testing mobile TV services from both Qualcomm and DVB-H vendor Hiwire. Hiwire is the DVB-H business of Aloha Partners.
Cingular’s agreement to sell MediaFLO services is also notable for CDMA pioneer Qualcomm, as Cingular is a longtime stalwart in the GSM community. Many in the industry had expected CDMA carriers like Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel to select Qualcomm’s mobile TV offering, and GSM carriers like Cingular and T-Mobile USA to use DVB-H technology from either Crown Castle International Inc.’s Modeo or Aloha’s Hiwire.
Qualcomm’s deal with Cingular for MediaFLO calls into question the ultimate future of both Modeo and Hiwire, as Qualcomm now commands a majority of the market share of the U.S. carrier marketplace.
“We share with AT&T an exciting vision of a world in which consumers have access to a high-quality mobile media experience wherever they are, whenever they want it,” said Paul Jacobs, Qualcomm’s CEO. “This agreement-the first of its kind between our two businesses-goes a long way toward making that vision a reality.”
Qualcomm is spending $800 million building its MediaFLO mobile TV network in major U.S. cities. The offering, which broadcasts TV to cellphones, allows wireless carriers to move data-heavy video services off their cellular networks, thereby preserving network capacity for communications.
Finally, the deal also is notable from a handset perspective. With the agreement signed and official, Cingular must now convince its handset vendors to build GSM phones that support Qualcomm’s mobile TV service. So far no such devices have been officially announced by any of the world’s handset vendors, although Cingular’s massive customer base creates a strong incentive for the development of such phones.
The Cingular-MediaFLO news headed a long list of mobile TV announcements from the 3GSM World Congress, highlighting the white-hot buzz surrounding the technology.