Ericsson on February 25 announced it’s launching the world’s first broadcast video-over-LTE networks solution, aiming to deliver on the promise of mobile video afforded by 4G LTE mobile broadband networks. Both Verizon Wireless and Australia’s Telstra have both already signed on, indicating growing interest from 4G LTE carriers to introduce more mobile video options into the market

TV and video traffic is forecast to continue growing rapidly, increasing from 40% to 90% of mobile broadband bandwidth, dominating mobile network traffic over the next three to four years, Ericsson predicts.

Ericsson’s LTE Broadcast platform is based on the combination of three new wireless standards – eMBMS (Evolved Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service), HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding) and MPEG DASH (Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP).

Verizon Wireless intends to make use of the new platform to deliver sports programming. “Verizon plans to introduce Ericsson LTE Broadcast to give sports fans a whole new experience while watching a game. We see new opportunities in this technology for sports, concerts and even distance learning and college classes,” Parissa Pandkhou, Verizon’s director of advanced solutions, explained.

Telstra is partnering with Ericsson on a live network trial in 2013′s second half. “The trial will show how we can improve the delivery of video to customers who want to enjoy the video content on the move,” executive director for networks and access technology Mike Wright elaborated.

Mobile video and TV has seen its share of fits and starts in the past. The introduction of tablets has accelerated the demand for mobile video though. LTE Broadcast will be a technology to watch. Other vendors, including Alcatel-Lucent also have LTE Broadcast solutions.