Reiter's Mobile TV Report

LIN TV, News Over Wireless develop BlackBerry mobile TV software

LIN TV in conjunction with Capitol Broadcasting’s News Over Wireless is offering mobile TV software for BlackBerry phones, LIN says (pdf file).

LIN operates 27 television stations and released BlackBerry software on August 7 that was customized for six of the stations: WISH, WAVY, KRQE, WANE, WALA and KXAN (see below).  LIN also offers iPhone applications.

New Over Wireless has been a pioneer in developing platform and client software for mobile television, and I’ve written about the company several times.

Mobile TV might have many detractors, but there certainly are a variety of ways to obtain it in the United States — from cellular operators, directly from content providers and from TV stations.

NTT DoCoMo buys 35 percent of video software company Packet Video

From mocoNews.net I see that the Japanese mobile telecommunications giant NTT DoCoMo has purchased 35 percent of the multimedia software company Packet Video for $45 million, according to Packet Video’s press release.

Packet Video has been working with DoCoMo since 1998, and its multimedia player software, pvPlayer, has been incorporated in more than 90 of the cellular operator’s phones, the press release says.  As mocoNews.net notes, Packet Video is part of Nextwave Wireless, which has been under financial pressure and appears to be making Packet Video its flagship product.

I wrote in late June that Qualcomm’s FLO TV says it will offer a keychain-sized device that receives FLO’s mobile television signal and relays it to WiFi-enabled devices.  That way, cellular phones and other electronic devices that aren’t specifically designed for FLO would be able to play the mobile TV programs.

Qualcomm hasn’t released the name of receiver’s manufacturer, but as I wrote in the article, Packet Video was developing that type of device.  I don’t know whether Packet Video is the company supply the receiver, but it’s worth mentioning.

Akamai to offer HTTP adaptive streaming for iPhone 3GS, iPod touch

From Gigaom I see that Akamai Technologies’ servers will offer HTTP adaptive streaming to the Apple iPhone 3GS and iPod touch via the newest OS X mobile operating system version 3.0, says Akamai’s press release.

As I wrote several days ago, HTTP adaptive streaming adjusts and compensates for data rate fluctuations in streaming video — wireless or wired — to offer the best quality based on the data speed.  It’s not a new technology, but it’s available now in the iPhone 3GS and will be available when the Apple’s new operating system version, Snow Leopard, is released later this year.

Akamai has established a demonstration Web site to showcase the technology (see below).  Content companies providing videos for the site include the Canadian Broadcasting Corp., Discovery, Fox News, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, MTV, NPR, Turner Sports and USA Today, Akamai says.

Inlet Technologies’ software is encoding the live and video on demand highlights on that “iPhone 3.0 Video Showcase” site.

Business implications

As I noted in my previous blog posting, HTTP adaptive streaming runs in the Safari browser, without requiring a specific application.  That means content companies can offer video streaming without an app downloaded from iTunes and, possibly, without either Apple’s or AT&T’s approval.

BBC World News available on iPhone/iPod touch in 16 European countries

Users of Apple’s iPhone and iPod touch in 16 European countries may live-stream the ”BBC World News” (see below) for free over 3G and WiFi, after paying 7.99 euros ($11.18) to purchase the application from the iTunes App Store, the BBC reports.

The countries where the “BBC World News” app is available are:  Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

The application also includes access to the BBC’s cellular news Web site.  When viewing the “BBC World News” live TV feed, the quality is “standard” over 3G, but available for viewing in higher quality, if desired, over WiFi.

The BBC cautions users that approximately 7.2MB are streamed every ten minutes when watching the TV program.  So you had better be on an unlimited data plan — or wealthy if you plan to watch it on a per-kilobyte or per-megabyte plan (such as when roaming).

No others need apply

For the fun of it, I clicked on the link on the BBC page to obtain the “BBC World News” app.  Up popped a message that read:  “The item you’ve requested is not currently available in the U.S. store, but it’s available in the French store.  Click Change Store to view this item.”

So I clicked and the app was displayed (see below).  I don’t have an iPhone (although it’s getting increasingly tempting with each new OS and new applications) or an iPod touch. 

Even if I did have the phone or iPod, I assume the geographical restriction would prohibit the “BBC World News” from being streamed over AT&T Mobility — if I were even allowed to purchase it from the French App Store while in the United States.  I didn’t try to find out.

Adobe says full version of Flash coming to smartphones in early 2010

At the GSMA Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Adobe announced it would offer a full version of Flash –– Flash Player 10 — for Windows Mobile, Google Android, Nokia Series 60 (Symbian) and Palm webOS phones beginning early in 2010, according to CNET News.

This is a big deal.  Currently, the only version of Flash for cellular phones is Flash Lite, which requires Web content to be coded specifically for that software.  Adobe says about 40 percent of phones shipped today have Flash Lite.

However, with the regular computer version of Flash for phones — which Adobe says will be offered — the entire world of Flash videos, including television programs and full length movies, would be available.

Cellular subscribers would be able to, supposedly, download and stream complete TV programs and clips from the networks as well as video aggregators, such as Hulu.  This could dramatically affect the mobile television business in countries where the dominant revenue model is based on paid subscriptions, rather than advertiser-supported free channels.

Not all rosy

Of course, subscription-based mobile TV plans aren’t subject to the data caps that require users to pay additional fees if they exceed the maximum data allowance.  In the U.S., the typical maximum cap is 5 GB for $60 per month, and downloading lots of videos can take up a lot of bandwidth.

Also, the speed and reliability of 3G isn’t always good enough to download or stream standard definition videos, let alone high definition.  In contrast, Qualcomm’s MediaFLO mobile TV service employs its own frequencies and antennas that provide video quality that’s typically superior to transmissions over 3G.

Of course, subscription-based content for 3G frequencies can be optimized for streaming or on-demand programs.

Battle between free versus paid?

Members of the Open Mobile Video Coalition next year are expected to begin offering free, advertiser-supported television programs to devices that are equipped with receivers supporting the ATSC Mobile DTV standard, which the Coalition promotes. 

Another financial consideration is the increase in WiFi-enabled handsets, which could download and stream Flash videos without requiring 3G airtime.

So, if U.S. cellular users can receive free programs and movies via Mobile DTV using TV broadcasters’ frequencies as well as Flash-based Web sites via WiFi or 3G, will subscription-based mobile TV services be in trouble? 

Cellular operators won’t ignore this

Obviously cellular operators don’t want their mobile TV revenues — albeit slim — dry up.  The operators aren’t likely to bundle Flash on the handsets they subsidize, unless they can generate some revenues.  Also, we don’t know if phone manufacturers will incorporate Mobile DTV receivers or if cellular operators will sell and subsize these handsets.

Mobile TV in 2009 and 2010 will be a very interesting business.

Update (6/24/09):  HTC’s new Android phone, Hero, will include Adobe’s Flash Player 9 features.

MediaFLO interactive advertising should be just the start of mobile TV interactivity

During the CTIA’s Wireless 2008 conference in Las Vegas I spoke to Michael Coad, vice president of product management at Qualcomm, about Qualcomm’s MediaFLO mobile television service.  The most interesting aspect of the conversation was when Coad briefly discussed mobile TV interactivity.

He noted how advertisements on MediaFLO could include interactive elements, such as the ability to click on links to obtain more information about products or order them immediately.  I asked whether the program being watched would pause or end when viewer wanted additional information, and Coad said viewers could have a choice.

One of the potential disadvantages for this type of interactivity via today’s MediaFLO programs is because the shows stream.  They aren’t archived on demand, so if you pause the show to view commercial information and then return, you don’t begin watching where you left off.  Perhaps information could be downloaded in the background into another file or browser window.

Where’s the interactivity innovation?

The concept of interactive advertising isn’t new, although it hasn’t been developed much for mobile TV.  Interactive advertising could be an important component of mobile TV advertising, but interactivity in general could be a big deal for mobile TV.

I haven’t seen much, if any, innovation on MediaFLO, except for the relatively good technical quality.  MediaFLO programs typically are technically superior to 3G transmissions, with much less stuttering and pixelation compared to 3G.

But from the standpoint of innovative programs or innovative television techniques, I haven’t seen any.  MediaFLO offers the same junky programs as on traditional TV which, frankly, is sort of its idea:  You may view the same programs on your phone as on your TV set, although the times are often different.

Streaming and on-demand needed

To be fair, MediaFLO is a distribution and advertising platform rather than a mobile TV production company.  MediaFLO is part of the solution with good (technical) quality streaming programs, but it’s only one part. 

The future of mobile TV will be broadcasting programs that are different than existing shows and aimed at specific audiences, with varying lengths of programs and on a wide variety of subjects.  This niche-market programming is much more easily achieved via video on demand (VOD), which is one reason why VOD should continue to play significant role in mobile TV.

Citizen journalism tools and informing the world about live streaming videos

My latest weekly wireless communications “Thinkernet” column on CMP’s “Internet Evolution” discusses software and services for cellular phones and on the Web for facilitating citizen journalism (see below).  It also poses an interesting question.

How do people know when others are using their cellular phones to stream live videos?  Currently, streaming cellular videos is the province of early adopters — mostly the technology/wireless geeks.  But what happens when millions of people around the world begin streaming live videos from their cellular phones?

More than three billion people have cellular phones.  Of those phones, about one billion are camera phones and a significant percentage can record videos.  Just as billions of photos are being taken with camera phone, so will millions — and then billions — of videos be taken.

How do we know?

As people become familiar with shooting videos, they eventually will become more comfortable taking videos that are streamed live to the Web.  How will we know when videos we want to watch — right now — are being streamed?

One view of the future might be on Mogulus’ home page that features multiple windows of broadcasts (see above).  Mogulus offers free hosting for live broadcasts (that also are archived), although the company doesn’t offer any option for transmitting from a cellular phone.  A variety of companies, though, offer live cellular video streaming services.

But whether the broadcasts are transmitted from a cellular phone or from a computer with a camcorder or video cam, how can we pick out the wheat among the chaff of all the live videos?  As I write in the “Thinkernet” column, companies like Qik, are offering ways, such as via social networking, to alert potential viewers.

Perhaps new, smarter, search engines will be able to quickly detect key words and concepts to alert us.  Perhaps the National Security Administration (see left) could commercialize some of its tools!

Reuters, executives use "mobile journalism toolkit" to document World Economic Forum

Reuters correspondents, a few select big name executives and bloggers will be carrying around “mobile journalism toolkits” to take photos and shoot videos during the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) annual meeting occurring now in Davos, Switzerland, according The Guardian.

Reuters and Nokia are collaborating on this effort, and I wrote about the “toolkit” in my weekly “Thinkernet” column for CMP’s “Internet Evolution” site.  If the toolkit is similar to the one I wrote about, it contains a high-end Nokia camera phone, software to stream live video, a Nokia keyboard, a tripod designed for camera phones and a power supply. 

The article says the Nokia phone will be an N82 (see below), that is the handset manufacturer’s latest high-end, five megapixel handset.  It records videos at 30 frames per second (the same as the Nokia N95 was that included in the toolkit I discussed in “Thinkernet”).  The N82 incorporates a Xenon flash; the N95 doesn’t.

Capturing Davos images

“The idea, according to Reuters, is for the mobile journalists to capture ‘compelling images’ as well as file stories, photos and videos directly from the handsets to Reuters' dedicated Davos website,” The Guardian says. 

WEF attendees who are getting the toolkit include Sir Martin Sorrell, the chief executive of the WPP Group; Jeff Jarvis, a well known media blogger, Guardian columnist and journalism professor at the City University of New York; and the Reuters chief executive, Tom Glocer, and editor-in chief, David Schlesinger.

Robert Scoble, a well known blogger who just joined Fast Company to develop online videos and other new media, received an N82 from Reuters, and he’s also transmitting live videos from Davos via the Qik online video site.  Very early this morning I was watching live when he received the camera phone from Reuters (see left), as I just wrote in the previously entry.

MocoNEWS' Mocollywood discusses mobile TV adult content, revenues, DRM

MocoNEWs.net has posted an interesting write-up of its Mocollywood conference in London, with tidbits about mobile television’s adult content, business models and digital rights management.

It’s no surprise that adult content seems to be making money in the mobile video space.  Indeed, the porn industry has been one of the early adopters of technology, whether it’s wireline or wireless, and has benefited from technological advances.

Color porn videos streamed to phones are a lot more interesting the black and white WAP stick figures of yore!  (No, not based on personal experience!)

Italy as a role model

Ingrid Lunden writes in the MocoNEWS article that Italy was cited during the conference as an example of a successful cellular adult content market.  One speaker says 80 percent of Three Italy subscribers watch this fare.  Quite an amazing statistic, if true.

Richard Gale, the marketing director for Playboy, is apparently champing at the bit to do as well with its content as in Italy.  “One of our biggest questions remains, how do you replicate the success we’ve had in Italy?” he says.

According to Tim Clausen, the director of wireless for Private Media, that offers so-called adult content, the company sells its wares in 35 countries via 80 operators, and revenues have doubled during the past two years, mocoNEWS says.

Experimenting with user fees

Adult content sellers also are exploring a variety of different business models.  Gale says Playboy recently implemented billing across multiple platforms — cellular, television and the Internet — where purchasers use a four-digit PIN.

Purchasers pay a flat rate to watch the content on any device.  “We’re going on gut instinct and taking a risk since we’ve had to make assumptions on usage for pricing,” Gale says.

Some speakers lambasted cellular operators for being greedy and or wanting to accomplish too much technologically.  David Thompson, the content acquisition manager for music, video and mobile TV for Sony Ericsson, says that “If the operators were to fulfill their business case on streaming they would not have the capacity to support it.”

Lunden notes that no cellular operators attended Mocollywood so they didn’t offer an opposing opinion.

DRM difficulties

Content owners also are concerned about the variety of digital rights management policies and lack of standardization across Europe, the article says. 

One speaker suggested a pan-European clearing house for DRM, but acknowledged the necessity of multi-country negotiations made that difficult.

MediaFLO, conVISUAL demonstrate interactive mobile TV at IBC 2007

Qualcomm MediaFLO and conVISUAL have teamed up to demonstrate interactive mobile television applications during the IBC 2007 multimedia conference in Amsterdam, the Qualcomm press release says.

The release says, “Consumers can view their favorite programs and research reality show stars, participate in polls and quizzes and even chat live with other viewers — all without any interruption in programming.

“Using conVISUAL's interactive TV platform and the interactive features of the MediaFLO System, the proof-of-concept demonstration will showcase live SMS events sent to mobile viewers via MediaFLO IP datacasting that are tightly integrated with the storylines of globally recognized television programs.  Using a split screen, viewers can watch TV while participating with the televised content and other viewers using SMS. conVISUAL's servers process the SMS traffic in real time and display information such as poll results and chat sessions right on the mobile device using MediaFLO IP datacasting and an integrated player.”

Future of mobile TV?

Regardless of the platform utilized, interactivity is likely to be important for both cable and mobile TV.  Indeed, mobile TV interactivity — SMS, polls, accessing relevant Web sites while watching programs — could be entertaining and useful for viewers and a revenue-generator for cellular operators and content providers.

SMS has already generated a huge amount of interest as well as substantial revenues in conjunction with traditional TV.  Using these techniques and others for mobile TV certainly is being explored by numerous companies.

You might want to check out the 13–slide presentation (see below) on conVISUAL’s Web site under the “Mobile Interactive TV” section (no direct URL, unfortunately).  You might find it interesting to see the various SMS and MMS options.