CanWest MediaWorks and Rogers Wireless have found a way to play "near TV quality" video on BlackBerrys, and on Aug. 8 launched a service they call bbTV with a selection of sports, news and other clips.

Arturo Duran, president of interactive and business integration at CanWest, says the partnership with Rogers is the first in the world to make video available on the portable devices. It uses technology developed by New York-based Sona Mobile.

"We found that everybody was targeting youth users on cellular phones, etc., and someone forgot about BlackBerrys," he says. "[BlackBerry users] are growing very fast, they have money, they work, and business users are one of the best targets that you can find."

However, at eight frames per second, down from the 30 of normal television, the "near TV quality" part is debatable. Current "3G" wireless technology could allow for as much as 15fps, but Duran says the download would be too slow. Rogers plans to increase the bandwidth when 4G technology becomes available, perhaps in 2008.

Rogers will not say how many BlackBerry users are on its network.

The service includes the Global National newscast, presented as breaking news eight times a day in 90-second clips created specifically for bbTV. Other content such as Global Morning is not bbTV-specific. Length runs anywhere from 90 seconds to three minutes and these are also offered eight times per day. This content airs immediately following its TV broadcast.

Rogers Sportsnet will provide two or three clips per day, 60-90 seconds each, recapping the previous night's sports news. On occasion, breaking news and key interviews will also be featured.

The channel is supported by ads and a $5-per-month subscription fee. Each clip is bracketed by an eight-second ad.

MobiTV adds CHUM channels

The parade to wireless continues with California-based MobiTV striking a deal with CHUM to make several of the latter's programs available on cell phones in full-length, streaming format.

MuchMusic, Star!, MuchVibe and MuchMoreRetro have been added to MobiTV's Canadian lineup. Viewers can watch these channels simulcast with the TV broadcast, complete with commercials. Some of the other offerings available through the usual slate of carriers include CBC Newsworld, Fox News, The Weather Network and G4techTV.

Erik Smith, VP of business development and programming for MobiTV, says the company already has news and weather covered, so it was time to go after another coveted category - entertainment. "People want something they can get in and out of very quickly," says Smith.

"The watch times are not super long, certainly not as long as regular television. So, typically, when people have eight to 10 minutes, they want to watch something that resolves itself quickly - things like music videos, cartoons and stand-up comedy."

MobiTV has also recently completed similar deals with Corus for Treehouse and YTV.