Turner, Ericsson launching CNN Mobile

Turner Broadcasting is launching a mobile entertainment and news content platform, powered by Ericsson, which it plans to use as a launching point for its TV brands into the wireless world.

Ericsson and Turner are collaborating to create a multifaceted multimedia environment containing mobile-optimized content from Turner’s Internet, broadcast news and entertainment assets. The partnership will start with CNN Mobile at the 3GSM World Congress next week. The mobile portal will offer video content from CNN’s TV programming as well as content from its online news portal CNN.com. Turner, however, is doing more than throwing up a few top stories on a WAP site. It is developing a downloadable intelligent client that can be customized by individual users and tailored to their region or news preferences. The portal will also archive 14 days of news stories—more than 2000 individual pieces—all of which will be searchable. The service will also provide news alerts created specifically for mobile and send out hourly video news updates for ‘World News Now.’

Turner and Ericsson are positioning CNN Mobile as the first truly off-deck mobile portal, allowing any customer with a WAP phone to access its basic services merely by entering CNNmobile.com in the browser window. The off-deck subscription-fee nature of the service explains why its initial launch will focus on Europe and Latin America. But Turner and Ericsson said the companies are developing an on-deck version of the software that will be more appealing to U.S. operators, which have far greater control of the data experience on their handsets.