Andrew
04-02-2007, 03:38 PM
Disney expands mobile vision (http://www.theregister.com/2007/04/02/disney_mobile_systems/) -- The Register, 2007-04-02
Despite killing its Mobile ESPN sports-oriented MVNO last year, the Disney Group aims to step up virtual mobile network activities in other areas as part of a broad ranging strategy to use mobile systems to underpin its content business and marketing. In this way, the media powerhouse is showing the way that many heavily branded companies are likely to evolve - away from simple extension of the brand through running a mobile service, to incorporating mobility into every link of the value chain.
Disney has hinted at more creative approaches to wireless in the past, with experiments such as a trial of a WiMAX network to deliver its own content. But its commercial moves have mainly focused on providing content to mobile operators such as NTT DoCoMo in Japan; and the MVNOs - Disney Mobile, fairly successful in the US but stalled in Europe; and the now defunct ESPN Mobile, which sought to leverage the brand and content of the Disney-owned sports channel. Now Larry Shapiro, executive VP for the Walt Disney Internet Group, says Disney has amassed sufficient expertise about what works in mobile to take this a step further.
Editor's note: MVNO is an acronym for Mobile virtual network operator (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MVNO).
Despite killing its Mobile ESPN sports-oriented MVNO last year, the Disney Group aims to step up virtual mobile network activities in other areas as part of a broad ranging strategy to use mobile systems to underpin its content business and marketing. In this way, the media powerhouse is showing the way that many heavily branded companies are likely to evolve - away from simple extension of the brand through running a mobile service, to incorporating mobility into every link of the value chain.
Disney has hinted at more creative approaches to wireless in the past, with experiments such as a trial of a WiMAX network to deliver its own content. But its commercial moves have mainly focused on providing content to mobile operators such as NTT DoCoMo in Japan; and the MVNOs - Disney Mobile, fairly successful in the US but stalled in Europe; and the now defunct ESPN Mobile, which sought to leverage the brand and content of the Disney-owned sports channel. Now Larry Shapiro, executive VP for the Walt Disney Internet Group, says Disney has amassed sufficient expertise about what works in mobile to take this a step further.
Editor's note: MVNO is an acronym for Mobile virtual network operator (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MVNO).