It's showtime

“Ali G meets Wayne's World.” To some of us, there probably couldn't be a more thrilling combination. To others — the majority, I'm guessing — these words are the very epitome of fear itself. Either way, that's the high-concept description of the made-for-mobile TV show “Free Stylin',” which airs on MobiTV's Comedy Time channel.

That's the description that Senior Editor Kevin Fitchard provides of the show in the opening to his cover story (page 36) about how such made-for-mobile TV shows — or “mobisodes,” in the merging industry parlance — are developed and produced. In some cases, huge entertainment studios like Twentieth Century Fox Television are driving the trend in the development of original mobile TV programming, and in other cases it's entrepreneurs like the two brothers who founded Comedy Time, who decided to create a show aimed at mobile users with no intention of having it broadcast via traditional TVs.

The measurable audience for mobile TV shows is still small, but that has not stopped entertainment conglomerates, creative entrepreneurs, device-makers and other firms from catering directly to them in the belief that they will grow rapidly. Whether it's through a device without connectivity, like the video iPod, or a mobile handset enhanced with MobiTV, the concept of untethered TV is spreading. Just two weeks ago, I was in a taxi in Las Vegas, and the cabbie had his phone mounted to the dashboard, flipped open and broadcasting a MobiTV news channel. He told me he checks in on and off during the day, figuring he's also providing a service to his fares.

Another concept that's spreading is mobile social networking. This isn't online dating for the mobile set, though that's one possible application. Instead, it's the creation of entire virtual communities, which, with the help of mobile Internet access, user-generated content, presence technology and other features, stay connected in the world away from desktop PCs. This trend got a boost when MySpace, the juggernaut online social networking site, announced a few months ago that it was launching mobile capabilities, but MySpace isn't the only one. You can read my story on mobile social networking on page 34.

On page 30, read Stephanie Dell's story about how 3G applications are putting some powerful pressure on mobile handset power management. In Forward Motion, get an update on acquisitions and potential deals in the wireless and equipment vendor communities and also the latest on Net neutrality.

CTIA's Wireless 2006 trade show is being held in Las Vegas this week, and topics like mobile TV, mobile social networking and handset power management are likely to be much debated. Carriers no doubt still are trying to figure out exactly what they make of — and make from — these trends. Service providers of all types have had a checkered history in the content market, and it might be best for now if we set aside debates about dumb pipes versus smart pipes and walled gardens versus open networks and just let the users of mobile TV services and social networking sites take us where we need to go.