Analyst has high praise for Modeo

Glowing praise for Modeo L.L.C.’s recently launched mobile broadcast television beta trial service in New York City is already rolling in.
“WOW!” is how Ric Prentiss of Raymond James and Associates Inc. summed up his two-day experience with the service and HTC device that Modeo is using for the trial.
“Having now seen the capabilities of this device, we can definitely see a large number of people paying to get video service on their wireless devices if the quality of service and screen are similar to this one from HTC,” he wrote in an e-mail.
The biggest challenge for Modeo parent company Crown Castle International Inc. is whether it can get carriers or other operators to deploy the service.
Prentiss, who reported good coverage in mid-town New York City and top-floor offices and taxis near Central Park, wrote that he only had coverage issues in a basement. He described the video as “crisp with HD-like quality-sharp enough that even I could easily read the scrolls running at the bottom of Fox and MSNBC channels.” Prentiss also reported that battery life on the device was much better than he expected.
“The signal provided very consistent picture quality with only a few digital glitches. Also there were occasional streaming issues when watching fast-paced action scenes. The biggest issues overall were a slight delay when channel surfing and difficulty turning off the TV when meetings began,” he wrote. “Considering it’s just a beta trial version, the evidence shows a lot of work on both the service and the phone have been completed.”