Be your own mobile provider

By Sinead Carew

NEW YORK, April 2 (Reuters) - The business of providing cell phone services has mostly been limited to companies with deep pockets, but start-up Sonopia Corp. says it will enable anyone to launch their own wireless service for free.

Whether it's the local baseball team or someone raising funds for a cause, anybody can offer a phone service that sports their brand but is managed behind the scenes by Sonopia, which will launch on Monday.

Sonopia will rent network space from Verizon Wireless, a venture of Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ.N) and Vodafone Group Plc (VOD.L), and provide cell phones, billing and a Web site for clients after they spend about 15 minutes setting up their service on its Web site, it said.

But unlike existing virtual operators such as Richard Branson's Virgin [VA.UL], which pioneered the provision of a branded phone service on rented network space, California-based Sonopia does not aim to promote its own brand.

Sonopia, with $9 million in funding, instead hopes to sign up organizations or people that attract customers because they are popular or represent a cause that attracts a following.

"You could call us the mobile equivalent of MBNA," said Chief Executive Juha Christensen, referring to the Bank of America (BAC.N) unit that manages "affinity" credit cards for groups as diverse as stores, charities and sports leagues.

YOGA PHONE

Sonopia insists its workers start their own services, and one employee aims to target environmentally conscious consumers by keeping part of the fees for donations to offset carbon emissions associated with making and using cell phones.

Another plans a swami mobile service that would text subscribers daily tips on meditation, like a yoga master.

Sonopia will face challenges in the tough U.S. wireless market, which already has many such virtual networks operators on top of four national networks.

Some analysts question the viability of such models after Walt Disney Co. (DIS.N) had to shut a wireless service it set up under its ESPN sports TV network brand last year. Disney still offers service to families under its own brand, using space on Sprint Nextel Corp's (S.N) network.

But Christensen, co-founder of mobile phone software developer Symbian, partly owned by Nokia (NOK1V.HE), said services with a more-specific audience like a school team could do better than ESPN's appeal to sports fans in general.

Sonopia, which gets the bulk of the revenue from clients' services, has already signed up eight groups including the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), International Animated Film Society, and the Long Island Ducks minor-league baseball team.

NWF spokesman Greg Griffith said it aims to earn $100,000 revenue in the first year, in time to help put environment issues on the agenda for the 2008 U.S. presidential election.

"And I really see this as a new communications channel with our constituents," he added, noting members could potentially click on a text message to immediately call their congressional representative to voice an opinion on a particular campaign.

((Editing by Braden Reddall; Reuters Messaging: sinead.carew.reuters.com@reuters.net; +1 646-223-6186)) Keywords: SONOPIA VIRTUALOPERATORS

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