Nottv To Launch On Smartphones Only In Japan

Japanese fans of mobile TV will be getting a smartphone only broadcast TV station next year that will be called Nottv. The new station is being backed by some of the largest TV stations in the country and one of the largest mobile carriers so it has the muscle to succeed if users like the content. Nottv was announced at Ceatec this week and will use bandwidth left over from when Japan ended analog broadcasts this year.

The station will function as an over-the-air broadcaster so it will not suffer from bandwidth slowdowns like some digital content delivery stations. The demo of the app for Nottv was shown off at Ceatec and it has the ability for live commenting using Twitter and Facebook. It can also perform time shifting duties like DVRs and supports on demand viewing.

The content made for the smartphone network will be much shorter than a typical show. Most programs will be about ten minutes in length so they can be watched completely during a smartphone user's idle time. The investors in the new network include all of the major Japanese broadcasters, ad agency Dentsu, and NTT DoCoMo. The service needs final governmental approvals and expects to launch next April.

[via PC World]