Version 1.1.0 of the hugely popular Netflix App has been released. And, as promised, it delivers video streaming Support both to Apple’s iPhone and iPod touch.

The iOS App Store software update, released on Thursday, makes good on the pledge from Netflix last April to provide iPhone and iPod touch users with the ability stream movies directly from their handset.

Netflix subscribers with unlimited memberships can now view unlimited content on their iDevices directly from their Instant Watch queue.

From PC World:

Browsing through and searching for titles is as easy as it sounds, though you can expect to do a lot of scrolling on the iPhone’s 3.5-inch screen. Once you find a title you like, you can add it to your Instant Queue or start playing it immediately.

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Mobile video ad network Rhythm NewMedia indicates in a new report that 3G networks are responsible for carrying a whopping 72% of all video content watched on Android smartphones in the United States.

When it comes to video consumption over 3G, Android takes the cake hands down. iPhone users, in fact, only tap 3G for 56% of their mobile video consumption.

Overall, the report notes, 3G accounts for 53% of mobile video traffic. The remaining 47% is attributed to WiFi.

With regarded to concentrated use, however, Rhythm NewMedia indicates that mobile video viewing habits are evenly distributed throughout a 24-hour period. This represents a stark contrast to the viewing patterns of mobile TV fans, who tend to concentrate their use of mobile TV in the evening.

Interestingly enough, despite criticisms of the “short attention span” of many mobile phone users, of all the viewers who access full-length chunks of video and episodic content, an impressive 26.5 percent of viewers watch the content in its entirely from their mobile device.

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So it wasn’t a fluke. The United States is finally gaining–and in at least one way, exceeding–more mobile-y advanced countries.

The technology consulting firm Chetan Sharma reported today that for the second quarter in a row, Verizon Wireless has beaten NTT DoCoMo–albeit by the width of an amoeba’s membrane, the firm said–in terms of mobile data revenue. While it did not specify figures for the Japanese carrier, the consultancy said Verizon’s average revenue per user (ARPU) was $17.37 in Q2 2010, more than any other U.S. cellular company. Considering Verizon now boasts 92.1 million total subscribers, that’s accounts for a chunk of the $13.2 billion in overall U.S. mobile data revenue for the quarter–a market that grew 22 percent from the same quarter a year ago.

“While it [the United States] lags Japan and Korea in 3G penetration by a distance, due to higher penetration of smartphones and datacards, the consumption is much higher than its Asian counterparts,” Chetan Sharma said in a press release. In other words, individual 3G users use the technology more often than individuals in advanced Asian countries. Sounds like marketers may be able to more finely-target their campaigns deployed on mobile Internet technology to this demographic of users.

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Amazon is ramping up efforts to expand the popularity and ubiquity of its hugely popular Kindle eReader.

This week, the online retail giant announced that a new, smaller, lighter, and faster Kindle – with 50% better contrast to boot – will soon arrive at an advertised price of $189. But as Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com founder & CEO, noted, “If you don’t need the convenience of 3G wireless, we have an incredible new price point–$139 for Kindle Wi-Fi.”

“At this price point,” he added, “many people are going to buy multiple units for the home and family.”

In a move that clearly aims to take some of the momentum out of Apple’s iPad as the newest eReader phenomenon, Amazon is pushing the all-new Kindle by emphasizing its updated bells and whistles, which include an electronic-ink screen, a 21% smaller body, a 15% lighter weight, 20% faster page turns, one month of battery life, double the storage to 3,500 books, and built-in Wi-Fi.

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While some may have seen the move coming, others are stunned today by AT&T’s announcement that the carrier will stop offering unlimited data plans for 3G users, including iPhones and iPads.

Ironically, the conclusion of the unlimited plan will set in June 7th, the very occasion that Apple chief Steve Jobs is expected to unveil the new 4th generation iPhone at the company’s WWDC.

On Wednesday morning, however, AT&T began a mad dash to squelch erroneous reports that the end of the unlimited data plan would effect current subscribers. It will not – at least not for now. New AT&T customers – and new customers only – now have to select between plans capped at 200MB or 2GB.

Due to the enormous data-demands of 3G customers and iPhone users, in particular, AT&T made the choice ahead of another likely Apple product introduction that could only serve to add further stress to the carrier’s already burdened network. The 4th generation iPhone, after all, is expected to introduce a video conferencing functionality – a feature that could push AT&T’s data capacity over the limit without some form of capped data plan in place.

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In the past, CBS has invested heavily in the development of their mobile sports presence. And building upon last year’s successful mobile coverage and corresponding iPhone app for March Madness, CBS is rolling out a host of new developments for the CBS mobile sports platform.

Chief among such noteworthy developments is the addition of 3G/EDGE support, which will bring live streaming video to the “CBS Sports: NCAA March Madness on Demand” iPhone/iPod Touch application.

The app in question debuted last year to much fanfare and was created with the help of mobile video solutions provider MobiTV. In 2009, however, the application’s enjoyment was limited to those capable of securing a WiFi connection.

The 3G support add-on is certainly a welcome addition, although the upgrade comes with a substantial price increase. Last year’s $4.99 has been replaced by 2010′s new price tag of $9.99.

CBS says their NCAA March Madness on Demand will provide the most comprehensive coverage possible, including all tournament games from the opening round to the Final Four. That means basketball fans can stream 63 live games in all right from their mobile device.

Delving into the technical aspects of wireless carriers and how they operate, one interesting concept relates to how the carriers access and distribute its network backbone- meaning mobile voice and data services.  You’ve likely heard the terms “tier-1″ or tier-2″ carriers, but what does it mean and how do the major US carriers stack up?

Put simply, a tier-1 carrier possess a network in which it’s the sole operator- meaning it has a direct connection to the Internet and the networks it uses to deliver voice and data services.  Similarly, a tier-2 carrier operates the same way, except it may get a portion of its network from a tier-1 operator by way of a concept known as “peering,” which can be loosely defined as piggybacking onto the network already in place by a tier-1 source.  Tier-3 refers to a carrier who gets 100% of its network through a tier-1 or tier-2 operator, with no direct-access of its own.

The landscape in the US has changed dramatically in recent years, with consolidation of smaller carrier making way for a select group of premiere carriers- mainly AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile.  All four of the aforementioned wireless carriers are tier-1 carriers, meaning they don’t borrow network capacity from anyone else.  These four tier-1 operators have been busy acquiring tier-2 and tier-3 carriers in an attempt to broaden its subscriber base, leaving very few independent tier-2 and 3 operators in the US.  An example of a tier-2 carrier in the US is U.S Cellular, who has an agreement in place with Sprint for voice and data coverage.

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