Bitbop, the mobile video service once owned by News Corp. (NSDQ: NWS) and then sold in a whirr of a divestment strategy, looks like it is finding its feet again under new owner Jesta Digital. It’s now live with a mobile and PC-based mobile internet service in Germany, its first…

Rhapsody hopes to move in to the black in the final two quarters of this year, after turning around subscriber decline following its spinout from RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) and Viacom (NYSE: VIA) largely thanks to uptake of its mobile service, the company’s chief product office Brendan Benzing tells paidContent.

Our look at some of the big stories in mobile today: more details on the Foxconn factory explosion; reports of a curvaceous future for the iPhone; ‘rooted’ Android devices barred from Google (NSDQ: GOOG) Movies service; Paramount launches full-length movie apps for Windows Phone 7; and BlackBerry Partners Fund invests…

Some media companies, like Disney (NYSE: DIS) and News Corp.‘s Fox, have invested a lot of time and money into mobile as standalone businesses, expected to drive their own revenue streams and sometimes even their own brands. Others, like MTV, have largely focussed on it as a way of driving…

In addition to seeking third party help from sources, MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) has been experimenting with its own home-grown entertainment check-in service called “Caption Bomb” to provide the link between its live programming and social media. That, plus heavy use of Twitter, is what drives brand lift for the…

While many major awards shows have seen ratings declines the last few years, Nickelodeon’s annual Kids Choice Awards seems to only get bigger. That, along with the fact its audience sees little distinction between their TV screens and their computers and mobile devices, has spurred the network to stream its…

Another chapter in the continuing consolidation mobile service agencies, and the growth of one agency in particular, the Mobile Interactive Group. Today, the UK outfit announced that it would be buying Golden Bytes to extend its operations into the Netherlands and Belgium. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

While Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) and Google (NSDQ: GOOG) are battling it out to woo publishers with their in-app payment services, I asked major content publishers at Mobile World Congress for their take on native in-app payments, and what it might mean to their own business models. The bottom line: of…

Poor Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) TV was starting to get overshadowed in recent months with all the attention being paid to the likes of Google (NSDQ: GOOG) TV and Boxee. But Monday’s unveiling of iOs 4.2 should bring back some buzz for a device no one should underestimate.

Comedy Central is covering all the promo bases for the Rally To Restore Sanity and the March to Keep Fear Alive, including the ultimate accessory—a free iPhone app designed as a companion for Saturday’s DC field trip with Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart. The expected items are there—a *Google* Map,…

Sprint (NYSE: S) unveiled a new service today at CTIA called “Sprint ID,” which bundles packs of applications together around a theme, so that first-time smartphone users don’t have to search tirelessly through the Android Market. But Sprint’s real interest is not only about increasing smartphone adoption, but also about…

A little dose of anticipated controversy always helps boost TV ratings, as it surely did for MTV’s Video Music Awards telecast last Sunday. And that translated to higher mobile activity for MTV’s iPhone and Android apps, as well as more users going to its mobile WAP site. Alongside the 11.4…

Greg Clayman is leaving his post as MTV’s EVP, digital distribution & business development, and is jumping to News Corp (NSDQ: NWS). to manage its tablet-based news organization, MediaMemo reports. Other the past month, News Corp. has been working on creating a dedicated news unit that would provide content specifically…

Clicker is adding Clicker Mobile and Clicker Social to the roster of ways the LA startup is trying to meet its mission to be the guide to internet video. Clicker Mobile includes free apps for Android (due today) and iPhone (waiting approval) with guides to videos that actually play on…

Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG) has struck a “multi-year” ad sales and digital content partnership with MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) that revolves around music videos. It’s hard not to see this announcement within the context of WMG still being a holdout when it comes to offering its artists’ videos on…

Nearly two years after MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) created its Tribes ad network as a way to extend its cable channels’ ad sales to like-minded websites, the Viacom property is moving into mobile. Mobile Tribes will begin rolling out ads on MTVN’s mobile wap sites, but the major focus will…

The groundwork has already been laid and now it’s official: RealNetworks (NSDQ: RNWK) is spinning off music service Rhapsody in the hopes of giving both companies a better chance at success. Real will reduce its interest in the Rhapsody America joint venture to below 50 percent to match Viacom’s, giving…

Nickelodeon said it will double its efforts in mobile this year, bringing the number of applications it has rolled out in the space to 40 since launching its first in February last year. In that time frame, Nickelodeon fans have downloaded 4.5 million iPhone apps with the bulk of them…

Tuesday night, CNN raised more than $7 million for Haitian relief during an quickly planned telethon on Larry King Live. That was small compared to the massive effort led by George Clooney and MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA) will reach across the world. Star-studded telethon Help for Haiti Now will air…