Disney Tosses Sports Content into Qualcomm BREW
RELATED SYMBOLS: (QCOM)(DIS)
Mar 8, 2002 (NewsFactor.com via COMTEX) -- Qualcomm 's (Nasdaq: QCOM) wireless
applications platform, BREW (binary runtime environment for wireless), has
received a boost with the announcement that global entertainment giant Walt
Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) will offer sports content through its interactive
arm, Walt Disney Internet Group (WDIG).
The first entries will be video games based on the "2-Minute Drill" sports
trivia quiz show and the youth-oriented X Games Skateboarding and X Games
Snowboarding programs from the ESPN cable TV network, Disney said.
Additional content for BREW from Disney's Internet properties, including
Disney.com, ABCNEWS.com and ABC.com and ESPN.com, may be coming next, in light
of the deal inked by Qualcomm and Disney last month. Disney also said WDIG will
tap the creative resources of its sister business unit, Disney Interactive.
Line 'Em Up
"Adding Disney is significant for us and for them," BREW senior product manager
Mike Yuen told Wireless NewsFactor. "It confirms that BREW is an open platform
that can draw one of the biggest brand names in entertainment."
According to Yuen, Qualcomm already has lined up other big names in
entertainment, including Mattel and the World Wrestling Federation.
Yuen believes interactive games will be an important component of the platform.
"If you look at what has happened in Japan, especially with i-mode, it's
apparent that gaming is big in next-generation services. And getting the X-Games
from ESPN is significant, because extreme sports are really hot now," he said.
BREW Gets Hot
Yankee Group senior analyst Phil Marshall told Wireless NewsFactor the support
of a content provider like Disney indicates that BREW is gaining momentum.
"For Qualcomm, it is a boost for CDMA (code division multiple access) ... with
handset makers and operators more likely to use the technology now that there
are more compelling applications for the platform," he said.
The challenge, according to Marshall, is that Nokia, among other phone makers,
currently prefers the GSM standard to CDMA for next-generation services. "Most
devices don't currently support BREW."
Still, with Verizon Wireless rolling out BREW applications, Qualcomm will have
access to a large subscriber base, Marshall acknowledged.
In the Mix
The next-generation technology lets wireless users customize their BREW-enabled
cell phones by downloading applications, such as games and Internet content,
over the air from a carrier's server. Hundreds of applications now available,
company spokesperson Michelle Bakic told Wireless NewsFactor.
To date, Qualcomm there have been some 10,000 downloads of Qualcomm's BREW
software development kit, she said.
Carrier Pigeons
Qualcomm also recently announced agreements with carriers Verizon Wireless and
U.S. Cellular to launch BREW applications on their CDMA networks.
Verizon Wireless, the largest mobile operator in the U.S., will be the first
carrier in North America to launch BREW-enabled applications when it rolls out
the platform in a selected region this spring, Qualcomm said.
U.S. Cellular, the nation's eighth largest wireless service provider, also has
signed a memorandum of understanding to offer BREW-enabled products and
services.
Other carriers who support the platform include Alltel, KDDI, Bell Mobility,
China Unicom and Leap Wireless.
By Jay Wrolstad |
