Mobile ESPN shuttered its struggling MVNO business today. The MVNO service, derided by many in the wireless industry since it launched during the Super Bowl earlier this year, was not generating the numbers of subscribers expected. Apparently, people didn't see the need for an ESPN-branded phone to get ESPN-branded content. As such, the company is switching gears and will instead pursue content licensing deals with existing carriers, according to the article.
The shuttering of Mobile ESPN will have no effect on the Disney Mobile MVNO, at least for now. While many will surely point to this development as proof of impending doom for other MVNOs like Amp'd Mobile and Helio, I think the ESPN model was unique enough to avoid tarnishing the entire category.
For the full story:
- read the Red Herring article [1]
Links:
[1] http://www.redherring.com/Article.aspx?a=18855&hed=Final+Bell+for+Mobile+ESPN§or=Industries&subsector=EntertainmentAndMedia