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Bangalore: MobiCast,
a live ball-by-ball update and cricket scorecard service delivered to internet/GPRS
enabled mobile phones from ESPN Inc.''s subsidiary Cricinfo is set to capitalise
on the next wave of Internet access, i.e. on the mobile phones. The
service is geared to offer ball-by-ball updates on mobile handsets, through the
cricketing website''s mobile services arm Cricinfo Mobile. A
recent TRAI report states that India has 31.30 million people access the Internet
through their mobile phones, both GSM and CDMA. That implies one of every five
mobile customers accessing the Internet via their cell phones, given the current
165.1 million mobile subscribers. Mobicast
has been introduced in association Plusmo, who makets mobile widgets for numerous
handset manufacturers including Nokia, Motorola, Blackberry, and even the Apple
iPhone. It is presently offered as a free service, with only the standard data
charges applicable based on the carrier''s rate plan. To
get the Cricinfo MobiCast on their cell phones, customers will have to key in
the URL http://ci.plusmo.com into their phone''s browser. The
service presently supports over 500 mobile handsets across various brands, and
has plans to add more mobile operating systems and devices into its list of compatible
handsets. "The
ball-by-ball updates is one of the most popular features in Cricinfo for cricketing
fans worldwide since it offers informed, uninterrupted match updates live through
a user''s browser, thereby replicating the closest experience of watching a match
live says Anil Nair, head, wireless media, Cricinfo. "The same feature in
a mobile phone assumes even more significance since it enables fans to keep tabs
on matches, with every single ball, even on the move."
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