Wireless handsets may be single most widely used modern technology and, because wireless sales continue to climb, there is no reason to expect the demand for new and improved solution to diminish. One of the greatest strains being put on developers and service providers alike is trying to solve the issue of delivering higher quality, bandwidth-intensive media to an increasing number of mobile customers — like mobile TV.

Wireless technology developer QUALCOMM Incorporated is doing its part to help the connect the industry; it has announced its single-chip Universal Broadcast Modem (UBM) solution supporting three of the world’s leading mobile broadcast standards.  The UBM solution presents a cost effective platform bringing together leading mobile TV standards into a single chip. Handset producers will be able to leverage the unified platform to address multiple standards in a single unit, saving expense and increasing speed to market.

The UBM solution includes enhanced support for Qualcomm’s (News - Alert) MediaFLO technology, DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcasting – Handheld), and one-segment implementations of ISDB-T (Integrated Services Digital Broadcasting – Terrestrial) to address the needs of network operators in Europe, Asia, North America, and elsewhere for mobile broadcast deployment. It provides improved flexibility to handset manufacturers while improving time to market of new products.

The UBM is designed as a companion to QUALCOMM’s Mobile Station Modem (MSM) baseband chipsets, but also can be used with other products.  Leveraging the processing power of the Enhanced Multimedia and Convergence Platforms, it combines digital and RF functionality into one product, eliminating the need for additional dedicated application processors for more power-efficient devices with smaller form-factors.

“Mobile TV on handsets is gaining momentum in the wireless industry, even as network operators continue to evaluate the various standards available,” said Mike Concannon, vice president of strategic products for QUALCOMM CDMA Technologies. “Our UBM solution addresses the industry’s need by providing a single universal chip that supports three of the world’s leading standards, enabling mobile handsets to receive real-time content, regardless of the broadcast technology selected by operators.”

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Erik Linask is Associate Editor of INTERNET TELEPHONY. Most recently, he was Managing Editor at Global Custodian, an international securities services publication. To see more of his articles, please visit Erik Linask’s columnist page.