Motorola to carry Veveo Web video apps

By Mickey Alam Khan

January 9, 2008

VTap lets users search and view online videos from their mobile phones

Handset manufacturer Motorola has inked a deal to run mobile Internet video firm Veveo Inc.'s vTap Web video application, a move that symbolizes the rapid growth in mobile rich media.

Per the licensing agreement, Motorola can pre-install vTap software on its multimedia handsets starting with the Moto Z10 model. VTap lets users search and view online videos from their mobile phones, while offering yet another channel for advertisers for outreach.

"The service is free-to-consumer, ad-supported," said Guru Pai, vice president of strategy and business development at Veveo, Andover, MA. "We'll be building an audience. I think it's the ability to get incredibly targeted to an extremely broad set of customers across all preferred age groups and demographics."

Also available at http://www.vtap.com, the application lets consumers watch online videos from their mobile phone. They can also share and send videos directly to friends through SMS text messages and get automatic updates of their favorite videos.

In Motorola's case, with vTap pre-installed, the Moto Z10 device is almost like a mobile film studio in kick-slider form.

Veveo said consumers can join vTap by creating their own personalized profile at vTap.com.

While Motorola is its first publicly disclosed manufacturer client, Veveo is also working with others, including TV companies, consumer electronics manufacturers, content creators and wireless carriers.

Veveo has venture capital funding from Matrix Partners, Northridge Venture Partners, Norwest Venture Partners and OmniCapital Group.