Mobile ESPN returns, launches on the VZW deck

Mobile ESPN is back, this time as a third-party content partner rather than an MVNO. The Disney-owned sports giant today announced an exclusive partnership with Verizon Wireless that will deliver the content engine and portal it developed for its MVNO to VZW handsets as well as launch an ESPN channel over MediaFLO’s new mobile TV service.

The multi-year exclusivity agreement will give Verizon Wireless the robust suite of ESPN services, using a real-time sports data tracking application designed by UIEvolution. The exclusivity, however, applies only to the Mobile ESPN application and not ESPN content, leaving the broadcaster free to sell its programming and digital content to non-Verizon customers either directly or through other carrier partners.

Mobile ESPN closed shop in September just 9 months after launch as an MVNO on Sprint’s 1X and EV-DO networks. The company funneled an enormous amount of resources in creating not an ESPN-branded service, but one that brought sports content to the forefront of the handset. It featured a Sidebar feature on the home screen with constantly updated stats and scores and was tricked out with video updates, news alerts and general access to its vast stores of sports stories and analysis. The service, however, was expensive and subscribers didn’t exactly flock to the new service. Some analysts pointed out that ESPN had a vast pool of potential customers, but most of them were locked in contracts with other carriers. They speculated that if ESPN had held out longer it would have seen its customer base grow after those contracts expired.

The Verizon Wireless deal though, gives ESPN instant mass exposure. VZW has almost 60 million subscribers and a large install base of 3G users for its V Cast services. But rather than charge a premium for the service, the ESPN application will be part of the standard V Cast daily and monthly subscription packages, implying that Verizon Wireless will be paying ESPN for the use of its content rather than ESPN drawing a direct subscription fee from subscribers.

ESPN will also be launching a channel on the MediaFLO multicast TV network, which will power Verizon Wireless’s V Cast Mobile TV service. The channel will not be bundled with the Mobile ESPN application, but rather a standard channel on the TV menu.