We’ve pretty much felt that Qualcomm’s MediaFLO is destined to be an also ran technology, but even more so the expensive network build out that Qualcomm has undergone in the US, always cited as a $800 million investment. Which is why it is such a surprise, that it has a ‘dead, but it won’t lie down’ attitude, now that Bill Stone, one time president of the failed Amp’d Mobile business, has completed his first year at the head of the organization.
Subtly Stone has been altering perception of FLO TV and has convinced journalists to describe FLO as ‘rapidly growing’ despite the fact that the QSI segment of Qualcomm’s results, which is mostly FLO TV, reported revenues down to $2 million last quarter, from $6 million a year ago. It might better be described as ‘rapidly shrinking.’ At the $6 million level, even if all that revenue belongs to FLO, and if its partners keep half of all transactions, the number of customers cannot be above 100,000, and possibly this number has fallen.
Despite this, somehow Stone has managed to get sign off from senior Qualcomm management to plow in more $millions into not one, but three SuperBowl adverts featuring a remix of The Who’s classic ‘My Generation’ with new lyrics performed by the Black Eyed Peas.
Another spot uses CBS Sports commentator Jim Nantz, and the third uses CBS Sports studio host James Brown plus Nantz, basically pacifying his family in the car using FLO TV.
Rather than spend money on Superbowl adverts, Stone would be better advised casting around for some better content and paying for it. That’s what Steve Jobs would (will) do.
The same segment, Qualcomm Strategic Initiatives (QSI) lost $107 million for the first quarter up from the $98 million for the first quarter of fiscal 2009. Qualcomm said that the decrease in FLO TV revenues was primarily due to an increase in customer-related incentives that were recorded as reductions in revenues. So it is having to give it away to get new customers.
FLO TV is now seen as a white elephant around the neck of Qualcomm, a company that is without peer in its ability to create great wireless chips, ahead of a very competitive field. It says every quarter, without fail, in its financial reports that the company intends to exit strategic activities like FLO TV ‘at some point in the future’ and at this rate it couldn’t come a moment too soon, as it’s probably the only thing in the Qualcomm numbers that is more expensive than its legendary legal actions.