With New Network, Verizon And Qualcomm Look To Bring Live TV To Phones; MediaFlo To Debut In Late '06; Companies hoping to get more revenue from users with high-quality TV service.(INTERNET & TECHNOLOGY)

Byline: REINHARDT KRAUSE

Verizon Wireless says it will offer live broadcast TV and other video services via a new wireless network that Qualcomm plans to build.

Verizon and Qualcomm look to make it easier for cell phone users to watch TV on the go -- bringing the companies a new revenue source in the process.

The planned network, dubbed MediaFlo, will be ready by late 2006 in some parts of the U.S. Verizon won't invest directly in the network; Qualcomm has said it will fund the estimated $800 million cost itself. But Verizon represents MediaFlo's first customer.

Crown Castle, meanwhile, has laid out plans to build its own wireless TV network. That company, which builds cell towers for wireless firms, will soon announce a deal to help fund the investment, one brokerage firm says.

Wireless firms see mobile TV as another way to expand beyond phone calls -- just as they're doing with text messaging, ring tones, games and Internet browsing. The idea is to boost average revenue per user, or ARPU.

"Mobile TV may become very valuable to wireless ARPU," said Andrew Cole, an analyst at the consulting firm TMNG. "A wireless network dedicated to TV enables wireless firms to offer a wider array of video services."