Twofour and Player One Sports launch "The Ashes"

Twofour has joined forces with Player One Sports, the new division of mobile content provider and games publisher Player One to co-produce the world's first Cricket Mobishow. The show, which will start with a focus on The Ashes, will be available initially on mobile phone networks and later for download to video iPod and Play Station Portable.

The weekly six minute show will be presented by celebrity sports presenter, Mark Durden-Smith, and cover The Ashes' battle this winter, incorporating appearances from a wealth of sports celebrities, offering a weekly insight to the action and life on tour in Australia. Furthermore, subscribers will be able to send questions via mobile video which in turn will be answered by the sports celebrities as part of the Mobishow.

In describing the show, Pete Russell, Managing Director at Player One comments, "It will be a fast moving interactive show offering subscribers an entertaining but informative view of the series in Australia. We wanted to make it as interactive a programme as possible, giving mobile viewers the chance to feel part of what will be a massive sporting event. This strategy provides us with a true channel of content for our partners around a key sporting event that is sure to generate a strong following."

As well as the Mobishows, there will be a range of associated content including Freddie Flintoff's Allround Cricket, a web and mobile fantasy cricket game and a range of other downloadable content such as wallpapers, ring tones and video blog.

"We are in the midst of a media revolution and I'm excited that Twofour is leading the way," says Philip Bourchier O'Ferrall, Director of Twofour Mobile. "The show will be created using traditional TV production values, but it will be made specifically for the smaller screen of mobile devices; I am excited we will also be offering consumers the ability to send in their own mobile video content".

Philip continues; "Watch this space, this is the first of many convergence television announcements we will be making in the coming months offering not just video but a number of value added downloads and interactivity."

The Mobishow will be produced in one to two minute sections for ease of use on different delivery mediums. For example, subscribers who do not have 3G phones will still be able to access the content of each show via individual links, whilst 3G subscribers will be able to access the whole show.

Consumer interest in mobile content is steadily growing and 2006 has been predicted to be the year where the technology finally takes off with major sporting events, such as The Ashes, being the key drivers behind its pick-up. In Western Europe, it is estimated that by 2012, mobile content and entertainment revenues will reach €32 billion, with 50 per cent of mobile subscribers accessing these services on a regular basis*.

*Berg Insight: Mobile Content and Entertainment in Western Europe 2005 - 2012