Internet service provider EarthLink Inc. and Korean carrier SK Telecom have finished forming their new mobile virtual network operator.
The joint venture, called SK-EarthLink, plans to offer wireless voice and data services to U.S. consumers later this year. The operator will be fueled by $440 million in investments from the two companies in the next three years, and plans to target early adopters by offering feature-rich phones and high-tech applications using both CDMA2000 1xEV-DO-based networks and wireless local area networks. Each company will own 50 percent of the venture and will elect three members to SK-EarthLink’s board of directors. The operator is aiming to sign 3 million users by 2009, generating $2 billion in revenues.
SK-EarthLink has yet to disclose which networks it will use for the service, although contracts are already said to be in place. Because the venture will use EV-DO technology, it could use both Verizon Wireless and Sprint PCS’ EV-DO networks. The venture has offices in Los Angeles and Atlanta and hopes to set itself apart from others by offering unique data services. “We will offer a set of features not available anywhere else today, and we will differentiate on the data,” Sky Dayton, SK-EarthLink’s chief executive officer, said earlier this year.
