Talk, text, watch?

It may not boast the big screen that has friends begging to come over and watch the game — but then again, that’s the point.

The promise of mobile television rests in the portability of cell phones — a fact that is not lost on U.S. wireless carriers who serve 255 million subscribers.

With AT&T; Inc. rolling out its mobile-TV service next month — joining Verizon Wireless Inc. and Sprint Nextel Corp. — the three largest carriers are tempting consumers to use their cell phones for more than talking, texting or surfing the Web.

But despite carriers’ investments in mobile TV, questions have loomed about consumer demand for the service.

Neither Verizon nor Sprint would disclose information on subscribers, but only 3 percent of wireless customers over the age of 18 use their phones to view video or TV, according to Nielsen Mobile. While ABI Research expects the ranks of mobile-TV subscribers to grow to 462 million by 2012, 260 million of those users will be in Asia.

Many explanations have been given for the low penetration of mobile TV in the United States. Paul Jacobs, chief executive of Qualcomm Inc. — which powers both Verizon’s V Cast Mobile TV and AT&T;’s upcoming service — last month said carriers are not spending many advertising dollars on the effort, according to RCR Wireless News. Others say it’s easier for consumers to access content directly via the Web rather than a subscription-based service tied to their carriers. Some say there isn’t enough content to choose from.

“Mobile TV is in the very early stages. There are only a few channels to watch today,” telecommunications analyst Jeff Kagan said.

But the most popular answer: People simply don’t want to pay to watch TV on their cell phones.

“It costs too much money. That’s the whole story — period,” said David Chamberlain, a wireless-industry analyst with In-Stat.

Unlike traditional broadcast TV, which is ad-supported and free for viewers, wireless carriers in the United States charge monthly subscriptions or download fees to view their mobile-TV content.

Among U.S. carriers, Sprint offers the most channels. Its basic plan for $15 a month comes with eight channels in addition to movie trailers: CNN Mobile, Fox Sports, Fox Mobile, Weather Channel, Disney Channel and E! Entertainment, NFL Network and its own original-programming channel.

Users have the option of receiving 20 additional channels for $5 more. Mobile TV also can be bundled as part of Sprint’s new pricing plan with unlimited calls, texts and Web surfing for $99.99 a month.

Unlike Sprint, neither Verizon nor AT&T;’s recent flat-rate pricing deals — $99.99 a month for unlimited calling — cover mobile TV. Both use Qualcomm’s MediaFlo technology and offer eight channels: CBS Mobile, Comedy Central, ESPN Mobile TV, Fox Mobile, MTV, NBC News to go, NBC to go and Nickelodeon. Verizon recently added two channels, ESPN Radio and MTV Tr3s, which is dedicated to Latin music.

Verizon’s TV service starts at $13 a month for a limited package of four channels and $15 for eight channels. AT&T;, which recently inked a deal with Sony Pictures Television to offer full-length movies in addition to its broadcast channels, has not yet released pricing details.

“You look at what we’re paying for cable — $40, $50, $60 — that’s a lot of money but somehow people perceive that as having value,” Mr. Chamberlain said.

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