Thanks to Cellphones, TV Screens Get Smaller

"V Cast, which began its service on Feb. 7, is the most ambitious wireless video offering in the United States to date. The network gives subscribers access to some 300 video clips, most from two to three minutes long. There are CNN news updates, ESPN sports briefs, music videos and jokes from the previous night's edition of "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart."

Cingular and Sprint currently offer video as well. The primary source of their content is a service called MobiTV, costing $9.99 a month, which makes more than 20 channels of television, including NBC News, Fox Sports and C-Span, accessible from compatible handsets. But Verizon's content is pushed through a significantly faster and more robust third-generation network known as EV-DO. That means the video on V Cast runs at closer to 30 frames per second, the same as broadcast television. Cingular and Sprint have both announced plans to upgrade their networks and begin selling EV-DO enabled handsets starting later this year."

[NY Times / log-in required]