Verizon Pitches Mobile Video

Verizon Communications Chief Executive Lowell McAdam said the company could have a wireless video service by year-end that lets pay-TV subscribers see some content on their mobile devices if regulators approve a proposed cable partnership.

McAdam said an "integrated" service could be made available to customers of Verizon Wireless, Verizon's pay-TV service and its new cable-company partners. "We could have something out that would be the beginnings of an integrated offering in time for the holidays," he said. Serving up TV shows and movies on mobile devices—and getting paid for it—has been a long-held dream for the wireless industry. With the introduction of next-generation high-speed wireless networks and big-screen devices like Apple’s latest iPad, ubiquitous mobile video seems closer than ever.

"Most content providers realize that the number of channels and the layout that you have within your home may not be appropriate for the mobile environment, and those discussions are just beginning now," McAdam said. Some content providers, he said, "have come to us and have said, 'We are willing to do an à la carte approach here.'"