MobiTV passes 4 million subscriber mark

Mobile broadcast service provider MobiTV announced that its managed mobile television and radio network now tops more than 4 million subscribers. The milestone follows 10 months after MobiTV passed the 3 million [1] benchmark--the firm first launched service in late 2003, and now boasts more than 50 channels, availability across over 350 devices and partnerships with more than a dozen operators, including AT&T, Sprint and Alltel.

In an interview with FierceMobileContent, MobiTV chairman and CEO Charlie Nooney credited the company's recent subscriber growth to carrier marketing efforts, increasing consumer adoption of smartphones and the introduction of new content channels. He also cited viewer demand for must-see sporting events including last year's Cowboys/Packers [2] tilt (a contest exclusive to cable's NFL Network and its mobile partner Sprint) as well as this summer's U.S. Open [3] golf championship playoff.
"We definitely see spikes around live events, but it's a total viewer experience," Nooney added. "We see MobiTV as a continuation of the home viewing experience. Because it's on a mobile device, when there is something important going on and you're away from home, [mobile TV] is the natural place to go. We're very big believers in streaming live video, and we believe it's critical to building usage habits, but it's only part of the whole system."

For more on MobiTV's subscriber benchmark:
- read this release [4]

Related articles:
MobiTV [5], UIEvolution team for in-vehicle video
MobiTV [6] issues viewer data