Mobile TV is still a relatively new service in India. Some service providers have been offering mobile TV, but the service has been patchy at best. This is because of a lack of spectrum and bandwidth or the shaky quality of the streaming video.
But mobile TV has been a growing phenomenon around the world, and, according to research firms, it will be a big thing in the next few years. Research firms are, however, divided on how big the market will be, that is how many subscribers will be signed up. According to ABI Research, a technology market research firm, by 2011, mobile TV services will have some 514 million subscribers worldwide, up from only 6.4 million at the end of 2005.
"The fledgling market for mobile television is beginning to build significant momentum, and advertising-supported broadcast services are expected to propel additional growth over the next few years," a new study by ABI Research says. "Broadcast will be the preferred method of access to mobile video for most people," ABI Research says. "Unicast will remain part of the mix for customers who want to access video-on-demand, but ABI Research believes that the majority of subscription services will be for broadcast content, and that unicast-only subscriptions will not be a significant part of the market."
But it cautions, "Most markets will not be able to support more than two broadcast networks due to the high cost of building them and the fact that most markets only have three or four major mobile operators selling wireless services to subscribers."
Giving a different take on mobile TV, In-Stat says that by the end of 2010, mobile TV broadcast subscribers worldwide will reach 102 million, a giant leap from 3.4 million in 2006. "Recognising that using cellular networks to deliver content that millions want to watch simultaneously requires much greater bandwidth than is currently available, carriers are turning to mobile TV broadcast networks, which have a much lower cost per bit for video delivery," the high-tech market research firm says.
"The greatest challenge for mobile TV broadcast operators is to acquire the spectrum necessary to offer services," says In-Stat. "Spectrum availability may determine which of the four standards is chosen and also impacts the business case for the deployment of a network." "Mobile carriers, mobile TV network operators and content providers will soon be testing business models to determine what mobile phone subscribers are willing to pay to watch and what advertisers are willing to pay to reach them," it says.
But mobile TV has been a growing phenomenon around the world, and, according to research firms, it will be a big thing in the next few years. Research firms are, however, divided on how big the market will be, that is how many subscribers will be signed up. According to ABI Research, a technology market research firm, by 2011, mobile TV services will have some 514 million subscribers worldwide, up from only 6.4 million at the end of 2005.
"The fledgling market for mobile television is beginning to build significant momentum, and advertising-supported broadcast services are expected to propel additional growth over the next few years," a new study by ABI Research says. "Broadcast will be the preferred method of access to mobile video for most people," ABI Research says. "Unicast will remain part of the mix for customers who want to access video-on-demand, but ABI Research believes that the majority of subscription services will be for broadcast content, and that unicast-only subscriptions will not be a significant part of the market."
But it cautions, "Most markets will not be able to support more than two broadcast networks due to the high cost of building them and the fact that most markets only have three or four major mobile operators selling wireless services to subscribers."
Giving a different take on mobile TV, In-Stat says that by the end of 2010, mobile TV broadcast subscribers worldwide will reach 102 million, a giant leap from 3.4 million in 2006. "Recognising that using cellular networks to deliver content that millions want to watch simultaneously requires much greater bandwidth than is currently available, carriers are turning to mobile TV broadcast networks, which have a much lower cost per bit for video delivery," the high-tech market research firm says.
"The greatest challenge for mobile TV broadcast operators is to acquire the spectrum necessary to offer services," says In-Stat. "Spectrum availability may determine which of the four standards is chosen and also impacts the business case for the deployment of a network." "Mobile carriers, mobile TV network operators and content providers will soon be testing business models to determine what mobile phone subscribers are willing to pay to watch and what advertisers are willing to pay to reach them," it says.