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May 2006 -- MobiTV, Inc. provides television and digital radio service to more than 2 billion mobile phone and PC users around the world.  The company’s Emmy® Award winning service has more than one million subscribers and delivers content from popular TV channels such as MSNBC, CNN, ESPN 3GTV, Fox News, Fox Sports and The Discovery Channel.

Opportunities in Japan
MobiTV was attracted to the Japanese market by the state of mobile technology and consumers’ propensity to use data services.  “From a technology perspective,” said Paul Scanlan, co-founder and chief operating officer of MobiTV, Inc., “it’s a very cutting edge environment where new applications and services like ours are well received.”

Market Entry
MobiTV worked with JETRO through the initial stages of setting up its Japan subsidiary using JETRO’s no-cost office facilities and market entry consulting services.  JETRO also introduced MobiTV to Japanese carriers, handset manufacturers, and business development contacts.  “JETRO was very responsive and supportive in helping us,” said Scanlan.  “I think if anything, we probably didn’t leverage the support enough.”

Results and Outlook
After working with JETRO in late 2000, MobiTV began working with Matsushita the next year to start providing its services in Japan.  MobiTV registered its Japan subsidiary in 2005 and then launched its first channel this past February in coordination with Japanese telecom giant KDDI.  The company has also received approval to launch its television service and is in the process of putting together a channel line up and package to deploy this summer.

When asked of the company’s results coming from business in Japan, Scanlan replied, “Revenue and long-term opportunities.  2006 is really our year for Japan.  We’ve been doing a lot of preconditioning work to drive initial awareness and making contacts, but now that we’ve got momentum going, we’re seeing a lot more traction there.”

MobiTV hopes to replicate in Japan the success it has had in other markets around the world.  Scalan adds, “Our business in Japan is part of our global network strategy of building out our MobiTV and MobiRadio systems around the world so that we can truly be building a global TV network.”