14 DAY TRIAL // 3G is the next big thing for the wireless industry and everybody, from analysts to mobile operators are trying hard to guess what kind of video content will make a difference and will speed up 3G adoption among users.
Will it be mobile television? Maybe adult video content will do the trick? Guess again! According to an IDC study the video content for children is much more requested than it had been expected.
Although 3G phones and subscription plans are bought by adults, some of them decided to use the 3G application as a wireless babysitter. And this is possible thanks to Verizon, which offers one- to three-minute video clips of Sesame Street through its VCAST service. Videocasting, or VCAST, mobile-phone service started earlier this year.
The scenario is clear. A busy parent walking around in the car to solve daily business gives his 3G phone to his child, who is watching the Sesame Street.
"I have offered my own VCAST phone and service to parents of young children at airports and on airplanes, with a near-100 percent success rate at tears and tantrum avoidance," quipped Scott Ellison, program director of wireless and mobile communications at IDC.
VCAST offers data connections of up to 2 Mbps. Users have access to online games and video clips with news, financial information and entertainment on their mobile phones.
You can be sure that the Verizon example will soon be followed by other mobile providers.