The MVNO business is tough, there’s no doubt about that. These days, it seems that most MVNO startups out there are either folding up or barely staying afloat, and it seems Disney’s own wireless venture, Disney Mobile, is in that same boat.
According to Silicon Alley Insider, Disney CFO Thomas Staggs hinted, at a recent Merrill Lynch Media and Entertainment Conference, that Disney was contemplating its stance in the MVNO market. Apparently, Disney Mobile is having “some challenges” in getting their name out into the mobile-ether. But, in the end, Staggs concluded that “It’s still too early to determine any losses for the MVNO.”
Could Disney Mobile take the same route as Amp’d Mobile and exit stage-left? Or will they follow in Helio’s footsteps and secure hundreds of millions of dollars in extra funding from their parent company? We think it might be a good idea to get out while their loses are still at a minimum, but then again, we aren’t exactly within Disney Mobile’s target demographic.
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again, MVNOs are largely a passing fad (don’t worry Virgin Mobile, you’re probably still good to go). And it seems that Disney’s CFO has started to realize that very fact – afterall, ESPN Mobile is gone, Amp’d went belly-up, and Helio just can’t stay away from the funding-cookie-jar.
[Via: MocoNews]