ITV launches Mobile TV

I'm surprised nobody has picked up on this yet

From MediaGuardian...
http://media.guardian.co.uk/broadcast/story/0,,1864785,00.html

ITV has launched its mobile TV service, offering programmes such as Coronation Street on mobile phones - but with no advertising initially due to a legal hitch.
The new mobile TV service, available to subscribers on the 3 network, allows them to watch shows such as Emmerdale and The X Factor at the same time they air on ITV1, but without the ads.

There is an unresolved legal issue over whether broadcasters need to clear rights seperately to run TV ads over digital media including mobile phones and the internet.

Channel 4, which earlier in the summer was forced to pull ads from its simulcast broadband TV service over the issue of digital rights clearance, has maintained that broadcasting online is simply "an extension of its TV activities".

However, the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising has raised the potential issue of actors and musicians suing agencies over copyright infringement.

The IPA had been planning to deal with the issue with a large-scale meeting of all the parties involved. Due to the difficulties of getting all parties together over the summer, the meeting is now not expected to take place until later this month.

The 3 service will be priced at 99p per day for ITV1, 49p for interactive channel ITV Play and £5 per month for an 18-channel unlimited viewing TV pack.

The broadcaster also has an existing deal with 3 to deliver clips from shows including Coronation Street and I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!, as well as highlights packages available to download on demand.

It's funny how TV has gone back to people watching on a screen just a couple of inches wide!


Reading this before I wanted to ask one thing about the C4 situation (not worth a new thread) - the C4 broadband simulcast blocks out most imported programmes, such as Lost and Desperate Housewives for example.

OK, it's understandable there could be rights issues - but what confuses me is that both Lost and Desperate Housewives were the first programmes to be made available on the online on-demand service!


P.S. Back to ITV - actually it's worth a new thread. There aren't enough slagging them off already, are there!

I saw a big ITV logo last time I logged onto Planet Three on my mobile. Also MSN Messenger for free and free ITN headlines, not even paying download costs. Must admit, I don't think I'd pay 99p a day, unless I'm on a desert island with reception and fancy watching Sharon Osbourne chuck water over someone.

well who in the right mind would pay 49p for ITV Play, oh wait I think I know who might!

ITVPLC value their digital (rubbish, in my opinion!) quiz channel, higher than their main content main channel.

Is the content only network output, or can you opt to recieve local regional output?

Thinking that the two companies (hutchingson 3 telecom [or whatever it is called]', and 'ITVPLC') could use their common brand (even if it only exists on the number of the channel number setting) '3' in their marketting.

"ITV is set to channel 3 on your television, and now your '3' mobile!;

"You can recieve ITV programming on channel three on your television, and now on your '3' mobile!;

"3—that's where you'll find us!"

or something along those lines.

So the ITV mobile streams and C4 broadband streams are both having issues regarding advertising, so hence go out ad free.


However, when it launched in 200 the ITN News Channel was simulcast online - and on mobiles too I think - and I'm pretty certain they went out with ads.