News Corp. Bows Eclectic Mobile Storefront Mobizzo

: From the folks who brought you the mobisode … News Corp. takes its mobile ambitions a big step further with today’s launch of mobile store front Mobizzo – a direct b2c effort described by the NYT perhaps a tad hyperbolically “as the boldest venture yet by an established media conglomerate to insinuate itself into millions of cellphones.” Lucy Hood, president of Fox Mobile Entertainment, told the Times she has been working on Mobizzo for a year: “The question is, ‘How do we roll out a global mobile product? How do we share?’ It’s a new business we are trying to conquer. We are taking an enormous risk. But these days it’s about being first.” News Corp COO Peter Chernin sees it as a stand-alone business, not incremental revenue. (News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch reportedly wants it to be a global brand within the year.)
Mobizzo is selling directly to consumers but isn’t trying to do it without carriers, which are taking care of the billing. The launch carriers are Cingular and T-Mobile.
Pricing: Beyond a la carte, which ranges from $1.99-$2.99, two subscriptions are each priced at $5.99 with rollover credits and monthly renewals:
– Master Plan: 1 real tone, 1 fun fx ringer, 2 poly tone ringers, 2 grafix.
– Game Plan: 2 grafix, 1 game and 2 poly tone ringers.

Content: Mobizzo launches on Cingular and T-Mobile with an eclectic library of 2,000 pieces of content including News Corp. contributions and original pieces commissioned for the service. Content is divided into Collections, Ringers, Grafix and Games. (The fine print says games can’t be loaded on T-Mobile yet.) Items include screensavers and ringtones from “Family Guy”, “Ice Age 2: The Meltdown”; photos and voice tones from “Napoleon Dynamite”; games and wallpaper; college logos; from college sports teams. What’s not there: video, which Hood told the Times will take at least a year because most American cell phones can’t receive it.

– Original content is in the works as are contributions from global News Corp.

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