MobiTV
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Motorola CLIQ 2 gets 1.1.30 update, brings fixes and new apps to your slider
Whether it was the honeycomb keyboard, the FWVGA display or that new phone smell, the intoxication of owning a new CLIQ 2 masked the unpleasant odors within this device. Thankfully, a new update from Motorola promises to clear the air with improved battery life, fewer instances of apps crashing, and better haptic responses when typing. The list of improvements is substantial, so you'll want to check the source if you stand to benefit. After completing the OTA install, users will notice four new applications await, including: Lookout Mobile Security, MobiTV, Motorola's Family Room, and UNO. That's a lot to swallow if you're just wanting your phone to work properly. Even if you'd prefer doing without the added bloat, we're guessing CLIQ 2 fans will still want a whiff of this frozen yogurt laden with toppings. [Thanks, Carlos]
Shocker! MobiTV customers prefer larger, easy to see displays
MobiTV wants you to know that its ESPN Mobil TV offering had 100 percent uptime during the recent World Cup. Also, it's parsed some of the subscriber data that it accumulated during the tournament, and the analysis is in: subscribers with 5-inch displays watched an average of 118.2 minutes of soccer, while those with 2-inch displays watched almost half that (about 61.1 minutes on average). That's right: people with displays that are large enough to actually see what's goin' on will watch more TV than those with displays roughly the size of a postage stamp. Also presented here is viewing time-per-platform (Android wins at 125.7 average minutes / viewer, while WinMo takes up the rear at 62.7 minutes), and adoption markets (LA has the largest number of subscribers, followed by New York, Chicago, and San Francisco). It looks like all this is putting poor Norman to sleep here, but if you're interested in the specifics (and you want to learn the difference between a "sophisticated" tweenager and a regular ol' tweenager) check the PR after the break.
MobiTV sees big jump in viewership
You might think that the onslaught of multicast services like MediaFLO and ATSC Mobile TV would spell doom for the old guard unicast guys like stalwart MobiTV -- especially considering how much trouble some of our data networks are having these days -- but you'd be wrong, apparently. MobiTV has released a report today touting the fact that it's witnessed a whopping 49 percent boost in daily viewership over the last year; the company claims that a plethora of live events helped drive that growth, but it's pretty hard to ignore the fact that iPhone support launched in 2009, too. With mixTV in the works from these guys, the future could be bright -- assuming 4G saves our butts from our gluttonous data-gulping ways.
Watch live NBA games with League Pass Mobile for iPhone
The NBA, via MobiTV, has made available its "League Pass" service to the iPhone via the League Pass Mobile app [iTunes link]. Like the MLB At Bat app [iTunes link], League Pass Mobile allows you to stream live NBA games onto your iPhone -- over 40 live NBA games per week. There's also the ability to view stats from the current game, and look at scores from games across the league. Subscribers can also replay full games up to 48 hours after the game has been played. I'm a basketball junkie, and a former subscriber of NBA League Pass Broadband, the NBA's desktop version of the service -- former, because I actually just canceled my subscription yesterday. I found the service subjected too many games to blackouts, which often prevented me from watching many games of my beloved world champion Los Angeles Lakers. As a result, I'd often hop on over to my local sports bar to watch the game, which set me back at least US $12 with beer factored in. This year, instead, I'll be sacrificing the comfort of watching games in front of my desktop (and now the potential of watching it on my iPhone) for the peace of mind that the game I want to watch will be available at my local sports bar. NBA League Pass Mobile is available for US $39.99 in the App Store.
MobiTV demonstrates mixTV mobile DTV service
This one is still only in the very earliest stages, but it looks like MobiTV has taken advantage of the big National Association of Broadcasters Show in Vegas this week to show off a new mobile DTV service that it's developed in partnership with Sinclair and PBS, which it hopes will eventually find its way to a few interested cellular carriers. The service itself is a combination of free over-the-air DTV broadcasts (from PBS and the CW, at the moment) and subscription-based on-demand content, which would apparently be made available for a seven-day window and be delivered via mobile WiMAX. Unfortunately, there's no indication whatsoever of a potential roll-out, but it looks like MobiTV will be working hard during the next few days to woo some additional partners, so there's at least a slight chance that we could be hearing a few more details before the show wraps up later this week.[Via Phone Scoop]
MobiTV breaks the 4 million subscriber mark
MobiTV has been around for quite awhile, and although it has seen its fair share of ups and downs, today's a day for celebration in the offices that remain. After hitting the 3 million mark in February, the company is now claiming that its benefiting from some 4 million subscriptions. Charlie Nooney, MobiTV's CEO, was quoted as saying that the firm was "thrilled to be on the cusp of mass market acceptance for mobile entertainment in North America." We don't know if we'd go that far just yet, but here's a tip of the hat to you anyway.[Via RCRWireless, image courtesy of PDAsNews]
Tetris, MobiTV favorites for AT&T customers
What are AT&T subscribers buying, downloading, and using on their handsets? The carrier has released its top-selling apps for the first quarter, and we've got to admit, the results aren't very surprising at all. Not including games, MobiTV takes the top spot -- likely in part because AT&T pushes it so hard -- and the ubiquitous thriller Tetris is the number one game. Makes sense, but do you agree? What have you been downloading lately?[Via mocoNews]
Major MobiTV improvements coming next month
Likely feeling pressure to innovate as competitors like DVB-H and MediaFLO close the mobile TV gap, MobiTV is prepping a plethora of improvements to its software and back end that should be hitting customers everywhere next month. Perhaps the single biggest improvement will be the system's capability to multicast programming on the fly based on the real-time popularity of a channel in a given area, rather than unicasting it and requiring significantly more bandwidth be sapped from the data pipe. Speaking of real-time, ads will now be injected on the fly -- and they'll be targeted, too, giving users some semblance of a reason to not change channels or put the phone back in their pocket when their program cuts to commercial break. MobiTV also says that it has somehow managed to cut channel change times down to a second or less -- a huge improvement over the existing software -- addressing a complaint leveled by many a MobiTV user over the years. Sure, AT&T's rolling out MediaFLO next month -- but if there's a message in these developments here, it's that these guys don't plan on slipping quietly into the night.
MobiTV, HowardForums resolve their differences
It looks like all is once again well in HoFo land, with MobiTV president Paul Scanlan himself stepping in and corresponding with Howard Chui directly. In short, Scanlan says that they never intended to get HowardForums taken offline (good for them), but that an abundance of caution in protecting "content and carrier partners" led MobiTV's legal team to step in and issue some stern words. To quote Howard, "I guess everything is okay now" -- so if he's happy, we're happy. Here's to many more years of threat-free HoFoing, eh?[Thanks, TJ]
MobiTV taking legal action against HowardForums, should instead be spending that money improving its security
For most Engadget Mobile readers -- and certainly all Engadget Mobile editors -- HowardForums is a daily, if not an hourly read. It's one of the few sites we simply cannot imagine living without, and we'd like to think that most companies in the industry feel the same way because it gives everyone an opportunity to connect, share news and ideas, solve problems, and just generally bro out in a way that no other forum serving the mobile community really does. It seems that an utter lack of security protecting MobiTV's pay streams has been called out on HoFo, and rather than deal with it, the company is taking the easy way out by hassling Howard with a DMCA claim and is currently threatening to contact his host and get the site taken down by force. Little problem with that, though: there was nothing to decrypt, hack, or break, because MobiTV's stream is exposed as simple URL with no protection whatsoever. HowardForums, we wish you the best of luck; fight the good fight. MobiTV, guys, honestly, divert some of this cash to making your product suck less.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Mobile TV popular in the 25-34 male crowd
That chased-after demographic of 25 to 34 year-old males just found a new fan: mobile TV. ComScore states that 46 percent of current mobile TV subscribers in the U.S. are below the age of 35 and 65 percent are male. To us, that's an obvious conclusion from the research company (who supplied the stats). The research firm concluded that younger males are earlier adopters of newer technologies. Umm, yep -- we had our suspicions. Apparently, that same group is responsible for the spread of newer mobile tech, as comScore added "once the early adopters have had a chance to fully engage with the technology and share their experiences with friends, relatives and colleagues, Mobile TV is substantially more likely to reach a critical mass in the marketplace." Cool. Additionally, the top-recognized "brands" in mobile TV were Verizon's VCAST, MobiTV and Modeo. The research also showed that U.S. consumers wanted a high level of quality on a chosen mobile TV service. We're not sure it's there -- yet.
MobiTV closes UK office, cuts off 3 and Orange
The king of mobile television content, MobiTV, has shut down its British office to focus squarely on the burgeoning U.S. market. While mobile TV still is in its infancy here in the U.S., we'd think there was more immediate potential across the pond. Guess not. MobiTV is shuttering services it provides to UK carriers 3 and Orange, along with jettisoning the J2ME app that makes mobile TV possible on the Orange network (according to reports). Hey, at least MobiTV still loves Windows Mobile, right?[Via mocoNews]
Intel signs deal with MobiTV
It looks like Intel has yet to run out of announcements to trot out at its big Developer Forum in Beijing this week, with the company now letting out word that it's inked a deal with MobiTV that'll see the mobile TV service tailored for Intel hardware. There's not a whole lot of details on the arrangement at the moment, however, with MobiTV only saying that the two companies will work together to "optimize" the service for use with Intel-based notebooks, UMPCs, and the newly-defined Mobile Internet Devices (or MID) product category. The two will also apparently work together to bring OEMs on board, whose help they'll certainly need if they want to deliver the "out-of-the-box television experience" they're promising.[Via Laptop]
CBS signs on for programming on Sprint TV
Sprint Nextel is further sprucing up its Sprint TV service by adding content from CBS Broadcasting, according to both companies. CBS will provide live mobilecasts, full episodes and video clips from the CBS network. A rundown of the soon-to-be programming on the Sprint TV-capable handset includes the CBS Evening news, clips from hit shows like CSI and Survivor, daily-updated clips from the Late Show with David Letterman and even clips from classics series like The Brady Bunch and I Love Lucy. The goodies CBS will receive in this partnership will allow the network to sell advertising across its programming on the Sprint TV platform. Just fan-bloody-tastic there, Sprint -- can we have a commercial-skipping DVR with that, please?[Via Wirelessinfo.com]
AT&T's U-verse to go mobile with MobiTV
Some... er, most parts of the country are waiting on any flavor of that bandwidth-thirsty U-verse IPTV to get switched on, but AT&T's already looking forward to the next big thing. As American mobile carriers get to work on various mobile TV initiatives, AT&T has apparently tapped MobiTV to play a large role in their outreach to the smallest screens; or perhaps "larger role" is a more accurate way of putting it, seeing how Cingular has been offering the California-based company's streaming video service on many of its handsets for over a year now. How exactly the mobile variant of U-verse will work is unclear -- it remains to be seen whether it'll be offered only to subscribers of AT&T's in-home U-verse service or will be launched on a broader scale -- but either way, MobiTV says they'll kick it off by offering their own content and add U-verse content into the mix as time goes on. Details haven't been finalized nor have Hancocks been issued on any contracts yet, but they deal seems as good as sealed given AT&T's and MobiTV's already tight relationship. With Sprint and Verizon having both committed to delivering mobile TV via MediaFLO and T-Mobile testing a variety of technologies, Cingular has remained a bit of an enigma; it feels good to finally have some closure, though we have to shudder a bit at the thought of clogging those sweet HSDPA airwaves with IPTV.[Via MocoNews]
MobiTV hits the VC jackpot, lands $70 million
Perhaps looking to get a quick hit of cash before the onslaught of competing services gets into full swing, MobiTV has announced a deal with Oak Investment Partners, a venture capital firm, to provide $70 million in exchange for a board seat. No word on what kind of spending spree will ensue, but MobiTV's saying that the cash will "fuel the Company's rapid expansion in response to the overwhelming demand for its mobile television and radio service across international markets." To their credit, the numbers show that these guys are growing pretty rapidly, clocking over a million total subscribers at latest count -- not bad for a company whose domestic carrier partners have launched at least partially competitive services. Having sampled MobiRadio, though, we'll say this much: we hope a few bucks of that VC cash goes toward offering higher-bitrate streams.[Via BusinessWeek]
Snappy's HAVA Video Streamer
It might not be quite as edgy as the Slingbox in the design department, and the software support seems a bit lacking as far as client viewers, but the HAVA from Snappy Multimedia has a couple of welcome additions to the Slingbox repertoire. First off, the box includes built-in 802.11b/g WiFi, so adding it to your network shouldn't as much of a hassle. Second, the HAVA includes its own TV tuner, so you can have dual TV inputs if you'd like, or even use it as the primary (and wireless) tuner for your Windows Media Center box. Of course, all the usual location shifting capabilities are there, with up to 30fps DVD quality video available to multiple users over your home network, while lower bit-rate video can simultaneously be encoded for viewing over the Internets. Currently the HAVA is going for $200 after a pair of rebates, so if you're not bent on handheld or Mac support, and your inner fashionista is willing to take a hike, this little unit doesn't seem like a bad option for the remote viewing lifestyle.
MobiTV now available for Windows Mobile 5.0
We heard it was coming and sho'nuff, MobiTV just announced the immediate availability of their MobiTV service for Windows Mobile powered phones and devices. When run on WinMo 5.0 Smartphones, the $10/month service supports full-screen viewing, an EPG, and hot TeeVee streaming over WiFi or high-speed 3G-ish nets. And while the press release is just ambiguous enough to make it sound like any WinMo 5.0 Smartphone or PocketPC will work with the service, a bit of digging finds only the Treo 700w, Sprint PPC-6700, Cingular 2125 and 8125, and Motorola Q listed as "supported devices." So you've got to ask yourself a question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya, punk?
MobiTV cuddles-up with Microsoft to bring digital TV to your Windows device
While it sure seems that MediaFLO, DVB-H, and T-DMB broadcast technologies are set to bring the pain to mobile digital television pioneers MobiTV this year, don't count the old dog out just yet. Today MobiTV announced a partnership with Microsoft to bring their flavor of mobile DTV to Windows Mobile powered phones and devices, as well as XP-based PCs and laptops. The love-in means MobiTV will make use of Microsoft's Windows Media platform, including their DRM, audio and video codecs, and Windows Media Player for content delivery and consumption. The technology will be on display at CTIA where we'll be sure to check it out in our live coverage.[Via Geekzone]
