Sirius Satellite Radio has unveiled a long-awaited pact to offer cartoons and other children’s programming in the back seats of cars starting next year.
Chrysler will be the exclusive provider of Sirius Backseat TV in 2008, but the service will be opened up to other automakers the following year.
The service will be the cheapest multichannel TV offering for vehicles and the only one designed specifically for passenger cars.
DirecTV and EchoStar work with a company that makes mobile antennas for RVs and vans to receive hundreds of channels, but those antennas are big and expensive.
Due to bandwidth constraints, Sirius will offer just three channels, Nickelodeon, Disney Channel and Cartoon Network, but more may be added in the future.
The service operates via a satellite receiver and two small roof-mounted antennas. Cost of the unit will be $470, including a year of service. After that, video service will cost subscribers an additional $7 a month on top of Sirius’ $12.95 monthly fee.
Frank Wilson is a retired teacher with over 30 years of combined experience in the education, small business technology, and real estate business. He now blogs as a hobby and spends most days tinkering with old computers. Wilson is passionate about tech, enjoys fishing, and loves drinking beer.
