Verizon’s coming “mobile-first” video service for millennials will be called Go90 and initially be launched under a free, ad-supported model, Varietyreported, citing details found on a pre-launch staging site that has since been taken down.
Before the site was removed from public view, Go90 was being characterized as a service that will offer “live music, exclusive events, best of web content, sports, prime time and more,” according to the report. "We wanted to create a mobile-first, video-based app that can keep up with you and your on-the-go social life, One that features completely immersive live and on-demand content, no matter where you are or where you’re going. No cord required."
Verizon hasn’t announced a launch date for the service, but company CFO Fran Shammo said on this week’s earnings call that it will debut in the “late summer” and that content from AOL, which Verizon just acquired, will also be featured. However, the service “won't be the full entire of everything that we contemplate within the product set,” he said.
Other announced content partners for the coming service include Vice Media, Scripps Networks Interactive, ACC Digital Network, Campus Insiders, CBS Sports, ESPN, 120 Sports and Awesomeness TV.
The site discovered by Variety also featured content from others, including Victorious, GoPro and Vevo, and references to shows from Fox and AMC and NFL fare (Verizon has mobile distribution rights for NFL games and other content), but a Verizon official told the pub that not all content shown on the staging site is accurate.
Verizon has already said the mobile-first offering will include “ad-sponsored data” (expected to be so-called “zero-rated” content that won’t count toward a wireless sub’s monthly usage cap) and feature both live and on-demand content. The service will be network-agnostic, but will be optimized for Verizon’s mobile network. Verizon will use bandwidth-friendly LTE multicast technology to deliver some live content.
