Qik streams live video from cell to Web

Robert Scoble has gone wild for a new video streaming service for cellphones called Qik. It vaguely competes with Kyte, Seesmic and Ustream, but is perhaps closest to Kyte. Qik enables live video casting from a cell phone via any 3G/GPRS/Wi-fi Internet connection. Developed by Visivo Communications in Santa Clara, Qik has been in testing since November. Unlike sites where you have to wait for the video to be uploaded, Qik cleverly streams the video straight into the site with a 5 second delay. To use it you download and install the client software onto a Nokia S60 cell (and you’ll need an unlimited data plan). Click on the icon on the phone and then start streaming video. Once finished, the live stream turns into a recorded video. You can also send “Qiks” to Twitter by entering your Twitter user details on the Qik site. Qik worked fine for Scoble, but I tried it from London and have yet to get the confirmation SMS delivered to me to allow me to use it. But it’s an intriguing service which may well give Justin.TV some competition, as Scoble notes in this Qik video.
[More on a similar UK startup on TechCrunch UK]