- Mike Shields, Mediaweek

NEW YORK In what could serve as a major boost to mobile video usage, CBS Sports and the NCAA have announced a deal with MobiTV to bring live games from next week’s NCAA men's basketball tournament to Apple’s iPhone and iTouch.

The companies have collaborated to launch the NCAA March Madness on Demand iPhone and iPod touch application. The downloadable app -- which runs $4.99 -- will provide hoops junkies with the ability to stream live all 63 games of the tournament via their iPhone and iTouch devices as long as they have access to a WiFi connection. The app employs technology developed by mobile video pioneer MobiTV, which has long delivered live TV to mobile devices via subscription packages through carriers such as Sprint.

Though the availability of mobile video, including premium broadcast programming, is nothing new, it is still a nascent market at best. ComScore estimates that less than 5 percent of the cell phone subscriber universe access video in a given month.

But the explosive growth of the iPhone and iTouch, coupled with the the intense interest in the NCAA tournament among so many office-pool-participating fans, could prove to be a catalyst for the medium. Apple says it sold over 4.3 million iPhones during its most recent quarter, and some analysts estimate that the company will sell up to 45 million units in 2009 alone. However, the $4.99 price tag is steep compared to many apps, and the WiFi requirement may also limit the app’s usefulness for some.

Besides streaming live games, the March Madness on Demand app will also provide users with a variety of tournament-related content, including updated scores and brackets, along with game and team previews from CBSSports.com. During games viewers can also access live box scores and statistics through an overlay placement -- without interrupting the live video feed.

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