Mobile phones can surely be regarded as all-in-one devices as they have the ability to work as camera, MP3 player, computer with internet surfing and even TV, besides their original functionality of calling, receiving calls; and sending and receiving SMSs.
In India, all these services have shown an immense growth. Mobile TV services are expected to reach a significant benchmark. According to the study conducted by Springboard Research, mobile TV services in India are growing with a potential market size that would touch $360 million in 2008.
With this technology, mobile phone users can regularly watch TV content, which is widely available via traditional cable or pay TV subscriptions at home. This IT market research and advisory firm mentions that the mobile TV service operators should offer on-demand, pay-per-view option and eliminate a monthly subscription.
The survey was carried out in six major cities in India with 1215 volunteers, to understand the mobile entertainment needs. The report of the survey mentioned that mobile TV subscription could reach the penetration level of 5-6 per cent of the total subscriber base across the country in the first year of operations. Moreover, 84 per cent of mobile phone users would prefer this service if it is affordable and also easily available for access. Around 60 per cent of the same segment of users are interested in watching the same content, which is available on television such as news, sports, music videos and game shows.
“Mobile TV marries the two dominant consumption trends of entertainment and mobile telephony in India. The market is ripe for the launch of mobile TV services and we believe that India will have around 122 million mobile TV subscribers within the first year of launch of the service,” Ravi Shekkar Pandey, Manager-Syndicate Research, Springboard Research, said. “Mobile telephone operators will have an advantage over standalone mobile TV operators in that the former already have user subscribing to their value-added services. However, the success of either operator would be dependent on content offered and price charged for the service,” he continued.
It is believed that limited access of mobile TV service is available in the Indian market by Doordarshan. Companies such as Nokia, Spice Telecom, Qualcomm and Samsung are promoting the adoption of mobile TV in India. Furthermore, close cooperation amongst mobile providers and broadcasters would lead to a profitable business model for mobile TV service in the country.
