High-speed mobile broadband networks, capable devices
and flat rate data plans are driving market growth of media rich
mobile applications such as mobile video according to new research
from Frost and Sullivan (F&S).
Analysing the state of the US mobile broadband industry, F&S
says that although
streaming video content has been delivered to mobile devices in
the US for nearly five years, the penetration of video enabled
mobile phones in North America is now ‘significant’. It says that
with recent
improvements in mobile broadband networks, devices, content
creation, delivery and protection frameworks,
mobile video
services are set to become immensely popular channels for
information on the go, applications that could well likely see
use in mobile business.
The emergence of peer-to-peer services such as mobile video
telephony can further help drive adoption, suggests F&S who
also believes that users can expect greater choices in terms of
content, service providers, pricing plans and devices.
However, F&S cautions that a major challenge to users will
be to find the right mix of basic and premium services that work
well in the mobile environment. It adds that the network and
presentation layers need to present a unified experience to the
consumer without inundating them with multiple pricing plans and
service guides.
Looking at what needs to happen to ensure growth, F&S
believes that the greatest challenge to service providers will be
to ensure end user awareness about mobile video services and to
continue to justify the cost of basic mobile video services
included within data plans. It advises service providers to place
focus on making sure that the best services are available without
merely adding channels to a service line-up.
"High-speed networks, capable devices, and flat rate data plans
drive market growth," explained Frost & Sullivan Senior Analyst
Vikrant Gandhi. "3G services are available in all major cellular
markets and subscribers can virtually watch unlimited basic videos
when they subscribe to the high-speed wireless data plans.”