Informa: Mobile TV to generate over $10 billion in revenues in 2013

I guess by now we all know mobile TV is set for explosive growth and we have yet another research to prove that. It’s from Informa Telecoms & Media, which argues that while this year revenues from mobile TV services will generate $1.5 billion in revenues, in 2013 this figure will rise to over $10 billion.

At the moment, the revenues are predominantly from subscription fees but this is expected to change over time as the advertising-supported model starts to gain prominence. As a matter of fact, Informa Telecoms & Media believes that by 2013, nearly half of the revenues will come from advertising.

In the next two years, growth is anticipated to be strongest in the pioneering markets of South Korea and Japan before the rest of the world starts to catch up around 2010/2011. Despite isolated success stories in places like Italy and Austria, Europe is not expected to see rapid growth in Mobile TV until 2009. The USA is expected to take even longer as confusion over standards prevents growth. Eventually, concerted momentum behind ATSC-MH is expected to boost the market for mobile TV in North America.

According to Informa’s Senior Analyst Shailendra Pandey, operators are in the best position to offer mobile TV services. “It seems that a good approach for mobile operators will be to start with a free-to-air business model which also involves minimum capital investment. Once user uptake of services starts to grow, operators can then think of developing new revenue models that can be established on top of the free-to-air content platform”, Pandey added.

It’s also worth noting that most in the industry believed that mobile TV was going to reach the mass market a lot earlier than has been the case. The reason is in the number of market and technology barriers which have conspired to delay the widespread adoption of mobile TV by consumers and growth in many regions is still fragile.

More information about Informa’s research is available in their report titled “Mobile TV: Strategies, Business Models & Technologies, 4th Edition.”