QuickPlay Media Inc., which provides mobile entertainment solutions, has announced the first round of media partners for its QuickPlayer for BlackBerry (News - Alert).

That means BlackBerry users whose carriers deploy the QuickPlay Personal Entertainment Server can now access audiocasts from top-tier media companies and providers including ABC News, AccuWeather.com, Clear Channel, Gaiam, MarketWatch.com, The Wall Street Journal and Westwood One. Because these audiocasts are streamed, there is no download time. Each audiocast lasts up to five minutes.

QuickPlay claims QuickPlayer is the first application to deliver streamed audiocasts to BlackBerry devices. Through it, users can have easy access to business and finance updates, as well as news, entertainment and health and sports information.

But of course, it only means something if there is good content to be accessed.

“QuickPlay Media has lined up a solid mix of targeted media content for BlackBerry users,” said Jeff McDowell, vice president, alliances, Research In Motion, in a press release. “Streaming audio services complement other BlackBerry applications and provide another convenient and valuable source of information for mobile users.”

QuickPlay combines proprietary streaming technology with advanced audio codecs natively supported in the BlackBerry 8700 Series, BlackBerry Pearl and BlackBerry 7130 Series. The audiocasts are said to deliver high fidelity, which can be important when viewing entertainment clips including music or low sound levels.

The QuickPlay Personal Entertainment Server manages all aspects of the mobile media service including content management, subscription management, content delivery, and billing integration. Content can be aggregated by QuickPlay or by carriers themselves.

Other QuickPlay mobile services include interactive audio, video, and rich media portals.

QuickPlay Media is a member of the BlackBerry ISV Alliance Program.

For more information, visit www.quickplay.com.