Verizon has partnered with mobile media services provider FunMobility in launching a person to person video sharing service--and implied mobile social network. The service is called "America's Best Mobile Flix" or aFlix. The service allows Verizon subs to create mobile videos and share their UGC with mobile connections across other operator networks. Essentially P2P interoperable mobile video--I think!
Much like YouTube, customers can also review, comment, rate and share every video on aFLIX from their handset directly, and the best clips will be featured in a monthly "Best Videos" category. Users are
automatically presented with the highest-rated video they have not yet seen when they open the aFLIX app. aFLIX will run alongside FunMobility's existing America's Best Mobile Pix photo sharing application.
What's significant in this is the interoperable part.
Mobile video has been advancing in the mobile commentariat, but has been taking baby steps with consumers. Transmiting video sharing from person to person is defacto video interoperability. If you look at the text messaging comparable--around 1996 when full interoperability occured for SMS in the UK, or 2002 when it occured in the US, the market exploded at a 6x multiple within 12 months. Just as SMS provided "here's what I'm thinking" full video interoperability, as claimed, will provide SWIS services --'See What I See' services.
SWIS services can, if priced right, become the video equivalent of video messaging services. The fact that Verizon enables this cross carrier is quite significant. A potential poaching of subscribers could ensue if this were to really take off without the other operators offer similar services in due course. Keep your eye on this one.
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