DMB hits Manhattan
http://www.technologyreview.com/read_article.aspx?id=18051&ch=biztech
uesday, January 09, 2007
Crown Castle launches trial of live cellular TV service in New York City
By Associated Press
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NEW YORK (AP) -- Crown Castle International Corp. has launched a
trial of Modeo, a live television broadcast for cell phones, in New
York City after three years of development.
The trial, expected to continue through the first quarter, features
six live video channels including Fox News and Discovery Channel, as
well as eight audio channels.
Modeo has yet to sign on a cellular service provider to launch the
service, which would compete with a rival offering from Qualcomm Inc.
called MediaFLO that Verizon Wireless plans to introduce soon and
Sprint Nextel Corp. has been trialing.
''Modeo does not have commercial launch plans at this time, but
continues to engage in discussions with potential strategic
partners,'' the company said in a statement issued Monday at the
International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
Crown Castle, a Houston-based owner and operator of wireless towers,
is delivering the TV service using a technology called DVB-H that is
backed by major companies including Qualcomm rival Texas Instruments
Inc.
Cellular TV services based on DVB-H are already commercially
available in some parts of Europe and Asia, but not in the United
States. DVB-H is also being used for a service called Hiwire planned
by Aloha Partners LP of Providence, Rhode Island.
On Sunday, also at CES, Verizon Wireless announced that it will
launch its MediaFlo service, dubbed V Cast Mobile TV, in some markets
during the first quarter. Sprint has conducted a limited trial of
MediaFLO called VUE that began in 2006 and is expected to conclude by
the end of January.
Since both MediaFlo and Modeo broadcast their programming on a
separate frequency from the one cell companies use to connect calls,
subscribers will need new handsets with a separate built-in receiver
to use the new services.
The phone demonstrated by Verizon Wireless, which is owned jointly by
Verizon Communications Inc. and Vodafone Group PLC, featured an
antenna that can be extended to strengthen the signal.
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