San Diego-based Qualcomm is on the verge of selling its Flo TV mobile broadcast unit. The subsidiary has not been a successful venture for Qualcomm as the wireless telecom R&D company has failed to attract a critical mass of subscribers for its mobile TV…
San Diego-based Qualcomm is on the verge of selling its Flo TV mobile broadcast unit. The subsidiary has not been a successful venture for Qualcomm as the wireless telecom R&D company has failed to attract a critical mass of subscribers for its mobile TV service.
Qualcomm chairman and CEO Paul Jacobs said at an investor conference call that the company is exploring “a number of alternatives” for Flo TV, including discussions with prospective partners. “It will get done in the next year but I don’t think I can be much more specific than that,” he said.
Flo TV, launched three years ago, delivers mobile TV programming to operators like Verizon Wireless and AT&T. However, the platform has the potential expand beyond its broadcasting focus into a more general data delivery platform for connected devices.
Jacobs is talking to a number of suitors and is trying to pitch “things that different companies might be interested in relative to that business and relative to the spectrum that we own,” to a diverse range of potential buyers.
He has put three options are on the table: selling the business, selling the spectrum or finding a partner. The company has long said it intended to spin off Flo TV eventually.
Qualcomm spent US$683m acquiring the wireless spectrum to run Flo TV. A couple of years ago, it predicted that it would invest US$800m in all – including spectrum, network build-out and marketing costs – to get the network up and running.
Despite a marketing blitz, including advertising as part of last year’s Super Bowl, Flo TV doesn’t have a large subscriber base, according to analysts. Qualcomm declined to release its subscriber numbers.
