Virgin Mobile will join forces with NTL and Microsoft launch what is expected to be Europe’s first nationwide digital television broadcast service for mobile phones. Confirmation of the service is expected to made at 3GSM in Barcelona.
Virgin Mobile, which is the target of a potential £920m ( approx R9bn) offer by NTL, is preparing to launch the TV service to subscribers by the middle of the year. A four-month trial was held in 2005. Virgin Mobile TV, as it is expected to be called, will run over the UK’s established digital audio broadcast (DAB) network.
It is expected to offer at least five TV stations and access to a large number of radio channels. The service is offered on a wholesale basis by BT as the ‘Movio’ service which it has developed in conjunction with Microsoft. TV Licensing has warned UK mobile phone TV viewers that they still need a valid licence. Failure to have a licence could mean a fine of £1,000 (R11 000)
Confirmation of the service is expected to made at 3GSM in Barcelona shortly
