VoIP Now: Ubiquitous Streaming Video On Your Cell Phone

August 28, 2006

Ubiquitous Streaming Video On Your Cell Phone

So, you're walking by a billboard for a new TV show that looks interesting. You want to write down the details, but don't have pen and paper handy. Your head is too full of other things to remember unaided. So what do you do? Pull out your Bluetooth-enabled cell phone or PDA, point it at the billboard, and download a 30-second video clip that has all the information you need. No fumbling for a pen. [via Telecommunications Industry News]

This is a real scenario that the United States' CBS television network has created in some New York City train stations. You can stand up to 36 feet away from these special billboards and download clips, provided you have a Bluetooth-enabled smartphone or PDA. Telly junkies like me will no doubt be happy with such uses of streaming video. I can't count the number of shows I've missed over the years because I dislike watching a new series from the middle, due to missing the first few episodes. I'd rather wait 3-5 years, when it goes into re-run syndication, to watch the series in sequence. [I admit to being a TV junkie, but I do write about media, so it's kind of a necessity.]

This is different, of course, than IPTV (Internet Protocol TV), mobile TV, video VoIP, or VoIP interaction with TV characters. What I'd really like to see, though, is if I could download TV show information from these billboards, then transfer it from my mobile phone to my IPTV setup to let me pre-program my software to record the show to my hard drive. Now that would be a video junkie's dream come true. How long do you think it'll be before someone comes up with this sort of thing, if it's not already available?

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August 28, 2006 in Networks, Phones, Services | Permalink