Amp'd Mobile set to launch

Amp'd Mobile will open its doors, or at least its online portal, for the first time today, offering its highly anticipated mobile service and souped-up 3G phones on a limited basis from its Web site with plans for a more extensive commercial launch at the end of the year.

As a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), Amp'd is focused entirely on its service offerings, leaving the network operations up to its network partners. The youth-targeted data-centric service will run over Verizon Wireless' EV-DO network, now available in most major metropolitan areas and covering roughly half the country's population. Amp'd Mobile's apparent intent is to lure in highly savvy and hip customers that will opt for much more than the standard voice and SMS services used by most consumers.

Though it has yet to clock its first commercial voice minute, Amp'd Mobile is steadily signing up mobile content partners, announcing a batch of new television multimedia partners. On Wednesday, Amp'd said it has signed a deal with MTV Networks to distribute content spanning the entertainment channel's numerous television stations and brands. In addition, MTV made an investment of an undisclosed amount in the carrier and placed its multimedia guru, chief digital officer Jason Hirschhorn, on the Amp'd board.

Earlier this week Amp'd announced deals with CBS and UPN to bring content from their popular TV shows to the Amp'd deck. The deals are just a fraction of what Amp'd has signed over the past year. Its Web site homepage advertises reams of digital content partners, including popular movie and TV shows, downloadable music and videos, 3D games and fashion applications.

Amp'd's strategy is right in the sweet spot of where the mobile industry believes MVNOs will have the most success. In a survey conducted at the MVNO summit last week, content platform provider Motricity found that 62% of respondents believed that global consumer brands will dominate the MVNO market in the coming years. While Amp'd isn't built off of a single brand like the Disney and ESPN MVNOs Disney is launching next year, it has succeeded in several disparate global brands under its umbrella.

"If MVNOs hope to compete with traditional carriers, they will need to provide better access to a wider variety of unique content and not compete on price alone," said Ryan Wuerch, chairman and CEO of Motricity.

The survey also found that nearly half of the respondents thought the primary audience for MVNOs over the next two years would be youth--and when the survey describes youth, it doesn't mean the loose 12 to 34 demographic most carriers describe, but teenagers 16 and under.

Though no service plans are available yet on the Amp'd site, three EV-DO phones are being advertised, one from Motorola called the Hollywood and a Kyocera phone available in either black or white, called Jet and Angel respectively. The site also seems to indicate digital music will be a prime focus of the new carrier. The site has a detailed poll asking potential customers how they would like to receive music and how much they are willing to pay for it.

Amp'd has already begun sponsoring events like the Ultimate Fighting Championship and celebrities like Snoop Dogg, ahead of its actual launch. Amp'd has also begun broadcasting live events such as Ultimate Fighting contests and the Supercross in Toronto to users in a friendly users trial of a few select customers.