SlingPlayer App Now Available on AT&T’s 3G Network

AT&T has announced that its 3G mobile broadband network will support Sling Media’s SlingPlayer Mobile application. Sling Media (a wholly owned subsidiary of EchoStar) originally developed the wireless app to make efficient use of 3G network bandwidth and to conserve the finite wireless spectrum available to the wireless industry.

“We’re delighted with AT&T’s decision to approve the SlingPlayer Mobile app on their 3G network,” says John Gilmore, SVP and GM at Sling Media.  “SlingPlayer Mobile on AT&T’s 3G network gives customers the best experience possible for watching their home TV while on the go.”

Since mid Dec. 2009, AT&T has been testing the app and has recently notified Sling Media – as well as Apple – that the optimized app can run on its 3G network.  The SlingPlayer Mobile app is already available for use today on AT&T’s Wi-Fi network, which boasts 20,000 hotspots.

“Just as we’ve worked with Sling Media in this instance, we look forward to collaborating with other developers so that mobile customers can access a wider, more bandwidth-sensitive, and powerful range of applications in the future,” said Ralph de la Vega, president and CEO, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. “Collaboration with developers like Sling Media ensures that all apps are optimized for our 3G network to conserve wireless spectrum and reduce the risk that an app will cause such extreme levels of congestion that they disrupt the experience of other wireless customers.