Live video streaming while on the go has always been the domain of relatively high-end smartphones like the Nokia N95. Starting today, however, Qik is also opening up its service to a large number of popular mass market phones from Nokia and Sony, making it one of the first live video streaming service to do so. The Java ME-based application is now available for download from Qik and the company is also enlisting the help of its users for a private alpha test of a few more Nokia phones as well.
Live streaming with Qik is already available on Windows Mobile phones and jailbroken iPhones.
Live Streaming Goes Mainstream
The real news here is that mobile live streaming will now be available to a far wider audience than ever before. Qik is clearly positioning as a mass market product as well, while some of its competitors like Kyte have specifically shied away from going after this market and, so far, only support high-end Nokia S60 phones.
Now that Qik is becoming available to a larger and more diverse audience, it will be interesting to see if we will also see new ways of using it, as well as new controversies around the privacy and copyright implications of live streaming. Hopefully, Qik’s competitors, including Kyte and Flixwagon will soon follow suit and release their software for mainstream phones as well.
If you are wondering about the video quality of these live streams, here is a demo from Qik:
