Wireless Companies Turn Their Eyes To TV; Competing Standards Emerge; Verizon rolling out service for short video programs, but full TV still years away.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)

Byline: REINHARDT KRAUSE

Stay tuned for video wars in the mobile phone industry.

There's a major push under way to bring more TV content and video to wireless devices. Asia's big consumer electronics firms, as well as Europe's Nokia and U.S.-based Qualcomm, have jumped into the fray. They're supporting a number of different standards for beaming digital TV to mobile devices.

But the technologies still have a way to go before mainstream consumers embrace them. When that happens, some standards will win out and some will be left stranded.

"There certainly will be a shakeout," said Kari Lehtinen, director of rich media for Nokia's U.S. business.

The services aren't expected to generate much revenue in the near future. But wireless providers look to get established in the market early, so they'll have an advantage later on.

In February, Verizon Wireless launched Vcast, a video-on-demand service. Its customers can download music videos or watch news clips and short programs.