At the NAB Show, the Mobile500 Alliance will share hard data from its on-going soft launch, like how many people are watching, when are they watching and how long are they watching.
NAB 2013
Mobile500 Releasing MDTV Data At NAB
The Mobile500 Alliance wraps up its mobile DTV soft launch next week and plans to share consumer data and feedback from it at this year’s NAB Show.
In an interview with TVNewsCheck, Zachary Bloom, product manager for the Mobile500 Alliance and Randa Minkarah, SVP revenue and business development for Fisher Communications, an alliance station group member, said the group has been sending out weekly surveys to the 1,000 consumers who have been testing the MyDTV service.
“We’ve been getting a lot of good feedback from people using the devices,” says Bloom. “We’re very consumer-oriented. Whatever consumers like or don’t like, we’re going to incorporate and push forward.”
The Mobile500 Alliance, one of two consortiums aiming to make free, over-the-air mobile DTV a popular option for consumers, began its soft launch in February, issuing 500 Elgato dongles in both Seattle and Minneapolis (DMAs 12 and 15, respectively). Stations broadcasting a mobile signal in Seattle are KING, KIRO and KOMO; KARE, KSTP and WFTC are broadcasting their mobile signal in Minneapolis.
This week, the alliance held a conference call with its members (52 station groups; 437 stations), to share feedback from the consumer surveys.
“We shared some of the comments, like how it was easy to use, it had good reception and that they love the fact that it’s free and not using their data plan,” Minkarah says.
BRAND CONNECTIONS
At NAB, Minkarah says the alliance will share hard data, like how many people are watching, when are they watching and how long are they watching. In their conference call this week, it was reported that 62% of consumers in Seattle and Minneapolis watched Mobile DTV one to five hours per week.
Brian McHale, Fisher VP of technology, will report the results of the soft launch at NAB in a panel session Monday, April 8, from 2:30 to 3 p.m. in S225 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Additionally, Minkarah will present the same results on Tuesday, April 9 from 1-2:15 p.m. in N238.
A Mobile500 members-only meeting is also scheduled at NAB, where Minkarah says the next phase of MyDTV will be discussed. She declined to comment when an official launch would happen.
Comments (1)
Wanda LaCroix says:
March 22, 2013 at 8:45 pm
I not at all surprised viewers are watching at least 1-5 hours per week. I only see that number increasing as it becomes easier for viewers to use their PDA and tablets from an OTA source.