Providers look to World Cup to boost business

A lot of North American readers may not care about the soccer (or football for many of you) World Cup in Germany this fall, but the rest of the world can’t wait. Perhaps no one is more excited, though, than digital media providers and manufacturers. There is widespread anticipation that rabid fans of the month long event will provide the boost that digital media needs to reach the next level of acceptance.

Providers of all kinds are jumping on the opportunity, hoping to cash in during the event and afterwards. Yahoo will be providing webcasts of all 64 games. Cellphone operators are also going to be active, providing stats, highlights and even full games on phones. T-Mobile in Germany and Virgin Mobile in Britain will both be broadcasting all of the games over their networks. MTN of South Africa, which is hosting the 2010 World Cup, is also offering comprehensive coverage. Yahoo will be offering a mobile service that will give users live commentary texts of the games. All the providers hope that new users will join up because of their need for a football fix and stay active once they discover the joy of mobile television.