New Qualcomm chip supports 3 mobile TV standards

With so many different mobile TV standards being developed, and the supporters of those standards all seemingly convinced that theirs is superior, it seems as if we are heading for a battle of choices that will make the HD DVD vs. Blu-ray skirmish look like a walk in the park. It seems positive, then, that Qualcomm, is taking a step which may ease some of those tensions. They have announced that they have developed the world’s first chip which supports multiple mobile TV standards.

The new chip is known as the Universal Broadcast Modem, or UBM, but it isn’t quite universal, since it just supports three formats. It obviously will support FLO, or forward link only, since Qualcomm was instrumental in its’ development. It will also work with DVB-H and ISDB-T. Those format choices clearly signal Qualcomm’s intent to make a statement in Japan. The UBM will work with CDMA2000 and WCDMA 3G technology.