The lifestyle companies are now acting as mobile virtual operator or MVNOs, to jump into wireless industry without investing in spectrum licenses or in networks.
MVNOs instead of investing in infrastructure, they buy a wholesale network airtime from established carriers like Sprint Nextel; Verizon Wireless, a joint venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone; or Cingular, whose parent companies AT&T and BellSouth are merging.
The US MVNO revenue was about $4 billion last year while Yankee Group estimates the market will hit $10.7 billion by 2010 with more than 29 million subscribers. Helio, a joint-venture virtual network from EarthLink and South Korea’s SK Telecom, works for younger, upscale audiences with eye-catching phones and a focus on data and content. The Walt Disney’s Mobile ESPN works for sports fanatics. Disney Mobile is a lunching its family-focused MVNO on Sprint Nextel’s network.
The MVNO push their data through virtual network while Verizon Wireless has invested billions of dollors in new, high-speed data networks. Still they have earned 90 percent of revenue from traditional services.
Via : wired
