Sony Pictures is gearing up for full-length movies on AT&T mobile phones. The movie giant on Monday launched PIX, a domestic network for mobile phones that will let viewers watch selections from the studio’s library.
Offering films from Columbia Pictures, Tri-Star, ScreenGems and Sony Pictures Classics, the new service will include a catalog of movies across all genres. The films will be accompanied by added-value material. Titles will be available for up to one month, with films added weekly. Some of the first titles to be offered include Bugsy, Ghostbusters, The Karate Kid, and Stand By Me. Subscribers of AT&T Mobile TV, launching in May, will be the first with access to PIX.
“PIX will give viewers their own personal movie theater wherever they take their mobile phones,” said Eric Berger, vice president of mobile entertainment for Sony Pictures Television. “With an incredible library of quality Hollywood hits, it’s a mobile destination channel for convenient, enjoyable entertainment, and the latest offering in SPT’s distinctive portfolio of mobile games and video.”
Getting Off the Couch
Sony is reportedly in talks with other U.S. carriers to offer PIX, but did not give details about which other companies might be picking up the service. The pricing models for the new network have not been announced, though analysts said individual carriers will likely set their own pricing schemes. Some carriers may choose to offer PIX free with an ad-supported model. Others could choose to charge per movie.
A longtime concern with mobile TV has been the size of the screens. According to William Ho, a wireless services analyst at Current Analysis, handset makers are working to develop devices with larger screens that offer clearer images. Even so, he cautioned, mobile TV appeals to a different audience than the typical couch-potato viewer.
“Get the being-on-a-couch thing out of your head….