If navigation services are becoming more common on the cellphone, why can’t mobile TV move to the personal navigation device? Garmin said this summer it is moving into the mobile TV space by integrating DVB-H on to a personal navigation device. The first device will roll out in Italy with 3 Italia, the Hutchison Whampoa company. The move into mobile TV is smart—cellphone carriers have been encroaching into the navigation for some time. Garmin isn’t stopping there. In January, it unveiled the Nuvifone, a cellphone with a large screen that contains a navigation system that is expected to ship later this year, according to BusinessWeek, which has a good report today on how navigation companies, including Garmin and TomTom, are struggling because of the weak economy and wireless competition.

Garmin’s move into mobile TV corresponds nicely with the European Union’s recent endorsement of DVB-H as standard for the region. Its device, called the nüvi 900T, will stream content from La3 TV, the 3 Italia’s mobile TV offering. Each unit will come with a free six-month subscription as well as access to pay per view offerings. Garmin originally announced last month that the device be available in July. Today, DiBcom, a mobile TV technology company, said it will be providing the DVB-H chipsets for the device.