• The Wall Street Journal, Wednesday, July 18, 2007 11 AM

It was only a matter of time, but a bevy of new ad-supported services are allowing mobile phone users to stream or download video from the Web for free. And the services are carrier-agnostic. For years, Verizon Wireless and AT&T have sold premium video subscription packages with limited access to programming, like the now-defunct sports highlights package, Mobile ESPN.

MyWaves offers hundreds of thousands of videos from content providers, mostly independent submissions or culled podcasts. People gain access to the service by downloading software to their mobile phones. Cellfish is another mobile startup that allows users to upload videos and other media to personal "lockers." The service offers 10,000 clips and content from partners such as NBC Universal. Another service, 3Guppies, lets users access videos they find on the Web. Given the poor state of the mobile browser, this sounds like more of a broadband Web offering, though it might work well with other mobile services.

Advertising, for some, will appear as text ads at the bottom of SMS notifications. Most will also feature sponsored content from brands. More than 70% of new phones now come with video players; faster 3G mobile networks will also soon become the industry standard.

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