By Andrew Wallenstein 21 minutes ago
LAS VEGAS (Hollywood Reporter) -
Sony Pictures Television
is looking to launch the first movie network on mobile phones
in the United States.
The studio has signed a deal with AT&T and MediaFLO USA to
launch the linear channel as one of two exclusive channels
coming to the newly announced AT&T Mobile TV with FLO service
in May.
The channel, to be known as PIX, will be stocked with such
titles as "Ghostbusters," "Philadelphia" and "Stand by Me."
Mobile has been viewed mostly as a marketing platform for
theatricals in the U.S. With the domestic mobile video category
for even shortform clips lagging behind markets in Europe and
Asia, Sony is looking to entice viewers with more diverse
content offerings.
"What you see a lot on the carrier decks is promotional
content that people can snack a little on," said Eric Berger,
vp mobile entertainment at Sony Pictures Television. "There's
nothing currently there as deeply entertaining as these
movies."
Films have been made available on handsets on an on-demand
basis. Sony was one of several studios that contributed titles
to content aggregator MSpot, which teamed with Sprint to launch
MSpot Movies in 2006.
Sony always has been bullish on films via mobile. The
studio also was the first in the U.S. to embed full-length
titles on memory cards for handsets.
Although the prospect of viewers sitting in front of a
two-inch screen for two hours seems dim, Berger noted that the
objective isn't to keep people watching for the duration of a
film.
"We recognize that people are on the go with their mobile
phone and coming and going," he said. "This isn't for people
looking to view a movie for the first time. It's OK to miss the
beginning."
With AT&T on board, PIX will be available on the biggest
mobile provider in the U.S., though the company has yet to
disclose the price of the FLO tier. With PIX a part of FLO,
Sony allows AT&T to differentiate its service from Verizon
Wireless, which has been carrying FLO for the past year.
PIX will be available alongside nonexclusive mobile
channels including NBC, CBS, ESPN and Nickelodeon, which offer
altered forms of their traditional linear programming lineups
via multicast transmission.
Sony is negotiating with other U.S. carriers to carry PIX
but did not divulge which specific companies are in
discussions. As for pricing, each distribution partner likely
will use a different business model. For instance, PIX could
end up ad-supported on one carrier while free of commercials on
another that will charge an extra fee.
Sony eventually might convert PIX to an on-demand model and
might take the brand online as well. The full-length linear
strategy is just one of many different content plays with which
the studio is experimenting. "We're not doubling down and
saying it's only about longform," Berger said. "We'll continue
to do innovative things in the shortform universe as well."
Films will run on PIX for a month, with additions coming
weekly. Other titles coming to PIX include "Memento," "The
Karate Kid," "Layer Cake," "Resident Evil" and "Roxanne."
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
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