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BlackBerry: And the next killer mobile app is...
Clue - it's probably not TV...

By Gemma Simpson

Published: Friday 02 November 2007

TV could be the next big thing for mobile devices - but only if battery and network capacity problems can be solved, according to BlackBerry maker RIM.

Jeff McDowell, VP of global alliances at RIM, told silicon.com: "Unless we want to carry a car battery on our back, we will not be seeing mobile TV soon."

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And it's not just because mobile TV would eat up a device's power, McDowell also thinks the capability of the networks is not sufficient to support a high-quality television application.

He added: "If it wasn't for all these physical limitations, the next killer app would be TV."

RIM has been unimpressed by the recent YouTube and Vodafone effort to bring the video-sharing site to mobiles. McDowell said although YouTube may provide "titillation" to users by providing short bursts of entertainment, RIM cannot see users wanting to pay for such a service in the long run.

According to McDowell, a more realistic killer app for BlackBerry devices is mapping tools, including a variety of mash-ups with applications such as Google Maps. "After email, navigation is the next killer application because it sells itself to the mobile device," he said.

McDowell said other big BlackBerry-based applications will be killer apps for verticals, such as pushing information on potentially hazardous drug combinations to those working in the healthcare service, or airport and itinerary information for business travellers.