Regardless of whether cellphone users are demanding it, the drive to deliver TV content to them is picking up steam. Sometime late next year, Qualcomm will join the ranks of technology companies vying to become a major player in a business that so far has spurred only minor interest among consumers. Currently, cellphone-video technology using services such as MobiTV or Vcast can be a cumbersome proposition that requires users to establish a one-to-one connection with a video source, as if they were accessing a Web site. Popular video services are vulnerable to being swamped by requests, resulting in slower speeds and denials of access. Qualcomm and another aspiring TV-by-phone supplier slated to launch in 2006, Crown Castle, intend to leapfrog existing technology and essentially broadcast directly to phones. The key ingredient: microchips that turn cellphones into wireless TV receivers.
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