RealNetworks, Sprint team on cell phone content

Customers of Sprint PCS Group, the mobile arm of Sprint, are now able to subscribe to a package of multimedia content delivered to their cell phones by RealNetworks.

Those willing to pay $4.95 a month can access news and information from media services such as ABC News, CBS MarketWatch, Fox Sports, National Public Radio, and The Weather Channel, in addition to entertainment services, including horoscopes and movie reviews, the companies said Monday in a joint statement.

The service will initially be available to around 2.1 million customers with full-color, Java-enabled Sprint PCS Vision phones that allow them to watch clips and stream audio as well as surf the Net at speeds faster than most dial-up connections.

For RealNetworks, the service marks the biggest move yet by the company to extend its RealOne media streaming service from PCs to mobile devices, it said.

Sprint PCS customers can also select a premium service for $15 per month. PCS Vision Premium Pack provides unlimited Web access and text messaging as well as $10 per month credit for premium applications such as ring tones, games and screen savers.

Mobile phone operators view multimedia services as a way to sell premium services and more advanced handsets, and to boost customers’ overall usage.

For RealNetworks, which has been battling Microsoft for supremacy on the desktop media player front, the alliance with Sprint and several handset vendors could help the media browser company gain an edge on the U.S. computer software giant, which is also moving into the wireless arena with its software for mobile devices.

In May, RealNetworks announced alliances with a string of mobile device manufacturers. Under the separate deals, users of certain Nokia phones, Palm’s Tungsten T and Zire 71, and forthcoming phones from Samsung Electronics and Siemens will be able to access content through their phones over GSM/GPRS (Global System for Mobile Communication/General Packet Radio Service) networks.