Turner Selects WeComm To Deliver Mobile Applications For Brands Including NASCAR.COM

WeComm, a leading provider of interactive mobile data solutions, has announced that it has been selected by Turner Sports, a division of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc (TBS, Inc), as its mobile applications partner to launch feature-rich services including NASCAR.COM.
Turner partnered with weComm to utilize its technology to deliver multiple brands with a single mobile application download, supported on 350 handset models.
The first Turner application for NASCAR.COM, TrackPass Mobile went live in February 2008. WeComm has built these portals to be easy-to-use and deliver high-speed updates and video-on-demand even with limited cellular network availability.
The services will use various business models including subscription, free with advertising and micro payments.
Each subscriber can personalise his or her TrackPass experience to follow his or her favourite drivers. The application includes Live Leaderboard, Laps Led and an innovative PitCommand section where fans can view live-updating race information and car positions on a track graphic along with in-car telemetry data for speed, throttle/brake positions and RPM. Fans can also listen in to live conversations between drivers and pit crews, live radio broadcasts, the officials' channel, and the ability to scan in-car radio channels, giving fans a fully immersive, personalised race-day experience.
NASCAR is the second most popular professional sport in terms of television ratings inside the US, with 75 million fans worldwide.
NASCAR.COM, the official Web site of NASCAR, has been managed and operated by Turner Sports since 2001.
With the new TrackPass application fans can now experience the drama of a race while on he move or access unique information at the race track.
"Consumers are starting to demand the same experience on their mobile as watching TV at home and interacting with information on their PC," said
Scott Doyne, Turner Sports new media business manager. "We want to be at the forefront of the convergence revolution and by partnering with weComm we have the technology infrastructure to deliver the optimum mobile user experience."
The weComm powered services, which will be built on weComm's wave3 On-Demand Mobile Application Platform(tm), will offer users the ability to download multiple high quality and rich interactive services within a single client application. The platform scales to support millions of users. weComm's Managed Services division will run these applications on behalf of Turner.
"Turner has maintained its position as one of the most respected brands in broadcasting by engaging with its audiences through compelling content and the latest technology. With these new mobile portals, Turner is once again demonstrating that it understands how audiences want to consume content any time, anywhere," said Ian Meakin, vice president of
marketing and alliances, weComm.
weComm's wave3 platform uses a client-server infrastructure to deliver high-quality, interactive mobile data services to mobile devices. The technology delivers content and applications to handsets on-demand, giving the richness and interactivity of an on-device application combined with the flexibility and freshness of an online service.
(KMcA/JM)