Disney to Shutter Mobile ESPN Service, License to Carriers Instead

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 28, 2006 - 1:52pm.

New York - Disney's ESPN sports network announced on Thursday that it will shutter its Mobile ESPN cell phone service, which offered exclusive sports video and other content on a branded phone that used bandwidth from Sprint's wireless network. The company will support existing subscribers through the end of 2006, and provide a full refund on the purchase of their Mobile ESPN phones. An analyst with Merrill Lynch said the service had attracted fewer than 30,000 subscribers; Disney projected the service would count 240,000 by the end of its first year of operation. The company's new plan is to license the Mobile ESPN application to existing service providers. "With a redefined approach we have a greater opportunity to reach millions of fans while achieving our strategic and financial goals," said Salil Mehta, an executive vice president of ESPN Enterprises.
http://tinyurl.com/muul8
http://www.tvweek.com/news.cms?newsId=10827
http://mobile.espn.go.com