iPhone users shouldn't get their hopes up if they want to view television on the iPhone -- or any video that doesn't come directly from iTunes, for that matter. In its zeal to maintain control over the user experience, is Apple denying its users a better experience?
t's the sharpest little screen on the sharpest-looking cell phone on the planet. Many of those who have watched a music video, TV show or full-length movie on an Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) 3G iPhone come away wide-eyed and impressed with the 3.5-inch display featuring 480-by-320 pixel resolution (that's 163 pixels per inch, for those of you keeping count.) Those who scoffed at the idea of watching any kind of moving images on such a small screen have become converts after one semi-private screening of "Lost," "The Office" or "The Incredibles," usually accomplished while sitting next to an iPhone owner on an airplane.
The addition of the App Store means more opportunities to show off the graphical display magic of the iPhone screen with colorful games. Yet those who are looking forward to watching videos that aren't associated with iTunes or iPhone's YouTube application -- and want to do so in an Apple-sanctioned way that doesn't involve jailbreaking an iPhone -- could be in for some bad reception.
So is Apple missing out on an opportunity here, one rife with potential ad revenue and media partnership goodness? "Absolutely," Laura DiDio, principal analyst for Information Technology Intelligence, told MacNewsWorld.
There aren't any underground apps that help transcode non-iTunes video for the iPhone, or at least any DiDio is aware of. "But of course, the qualifier is that once you say there is no such thing, either somebody is working on it or has it out there. I know it's a matter of time before this type of thing emerges," she said. [Editor's note: Such apps do exist.]
iPhone Video -- Quick as a Flash?
A quick glance at Apple's Web site for information on video formats supported by the iPhone results in a not-so-quick, techno-heavy summary:
"H.264 video, up to 1.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Low-Complexity version of the H.264 Baseline Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats; H.264 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Baseline Profile up to Level 3.0 with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats; MPEG-4 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Simple Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats"
Nowhere in that maze of codecs and standards can one find the word "Flash." The iPhone simply does not support Adobe's (Nasdaq: ADBE) longtime multimedia software -- favorite of many a Web site and digital streaming service. Apple CEO Steve Jobs has previously doused any plans to light up the phone with Flash, saying it takes too much of a toll on the device's processor and battery life and gets in the way of a true mobile Web experience.
Those walls, however, may be coming down. At this week's Flash at the Beach conference in Brighton, England, Adobe confirmed it was working on a Flash iPhone player that might meet Jobs' strict requirements. Apparently, all that's needed is Apple's approval and Adobe could have it quickly available.
Until then, the ability to download video on an iPhone from a non-Apple-approved Web site can get in the way of a true portable media experience, according to Danielle Levitas, senior analyst with IDC.
"It doesn't have the instant gratification," Levitas told MacNewsWorld. "If you're willing to do transcoding on a PC, you could move just about anything over to the iPhone. That's not the same thing as being out and about and trying to get onto a Web site."
There are other, more universal obstacles. "Even if you look at video-enabled portable media devices -- those specifically bought to play back media -- it's pretty consistent: You're only looking at about 20-25 percent of those who have those devices who are watching video regularly on them," Levitas said.
The Competition Incentive
The iPhone is AT&T's (NYSE: T) ace, and in September the research magicians at AT&T Labs showed off some mobile applications-in-progress using the iPhone as a demonstration vehicle. The underlying technology was the phone company's U-Verse television-via-Internet service, but the demos showcased the potential for iPhones to work with that technology -- in one instance, "throwing" images from phone to TV and receiving them back to an iPhone.
The Open Mobile Video Coalition is another promising avenue that could end up allowing for live TV on your iPhone. Broadcasters are working on the ATSC-M/H (mobile handheld) standard, "and can upgrade existing TV facilities to transmit to mobile devices," Levitas said. "It has the potential not only to simulcast ABC, CBS, Fox and PBS, but over time you can build out the capacity -- assuming they can get capacity in regions and DMAs (Designated Market Areas) to also support cable channel carriage." Samsung models demonstrating this service were a highlight at the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show.
Qualcomm's (Nasdaq: QCOM) MediaFlo mobile multimedia service is another possible cell phone video solution. Verizon is currently offering it to stream live college football games to its cell phones. However, when it considers supporting outside codecs and standards, Apple -- now the mother of all proprietary technology companies -- is forever asking itself the question, "how does this help or hinder sales of their hardware or their own competitive solutions," Levitas said.
Google's (Nasdaq: GOOG) new Android phones could help speed up Apple's decision-making in developing more outside video for the iPhone. "Google introduced its own phone for (US)$170 to undercut Apple, so that is going to further spur the market," Didio said. "The thing that Google doesn't have is all the apps, but Google is so successful at this point, it's only a matter of time. Nothing spurs development like competition."
In the meantime, Apple has NBC/Universal back in the iTunes fold and continues to make deals with other studios and content providers. Download sales and potential ad revenue for future video content await. "Everybody's got to have a cell phone, a certain kind of cell phone," DiDio said. "You've got to have Bluetooth and GPS , and the iPhone is the rage.
"I do not think anything is holding back the tide. Video is the next frontier."
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