AT&T to launch branded mobile video service

January 5, 2011 — 10:03pm ET | By Sue Marek

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LAS VEGAS--Thanks to the demise of Qualcomm's (NASDAQ:QCOM) FLO TV mobile broadcast service, AT&T (NYSE:T) will soon put an end to its AT&T Mobile TV service--the branded service the operator resold to users who purchased FLO-capable devices. However, AT&T is planning to offer its own branded mobile video service, which will be powered by MobiTV.

Qualcomm announced in October it was shuttering its FLO TV service and last month the company revealed that it had sold its 700 MHz spectrum that it used to deliver the broadcast TV service to AT&T for $1.93 billion. AT&T will use the spectrum to build its LTE network. Qualcomm has indicated it will stop delivering programming to FLO TV subscribers sometime this spring.

In an interview with FierceMobileContent at the AT&T Developer Summit held here in conjunction with the Consumer Electronics Show, Mark Collins, AT&T's vice president of consumer voice and data services, said that AT&T will continue to resell MobiTV's streaming video service. Additionally, the company is planning to launch a branded streaming video service powered by MobiTV. AT&T will launch that product later this year.

Collins also said that AT&T will continue to offer its U-verse Mobile service. In October, the company launched a version of the service optimized for Android smartphones, making U-verse Mobile available on four operating systems.

The U-verse Mobile app allows U-verse TV subscribers to browse the U-verse program guide, schedule and manage DVR recordings, and download hit shows over any WiFi connection to watch them on qualifying smartphones.

Collins also explained that while AT&T was once bullish on broadcast mobile TV, the company always knew there would be challenges. Specifically, Collins said that broadcast mobile TV was fighting trends such as bigger and better TV screens coming into the home in the form of HDTV units. In addition, digital rights was a big issue: Consumers want to have the same experience on the mobile TV that they have on their home TV system, but licensing challenges often made that impossible.

However, Collins added that live telecasts, such as sporting events, were a huge draw for consumers. He said that the company experienced its highest usage when Tiger Woods won the 2008 U.S. Open and during the coverage of Michael Jackson's death in 2009.

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