Mobile Media and Entertainment in the US: forecasts 2007-2012

“The US mobile media and entertainment (MME) market is growing rapidly; its total market size is set to more than double, increasing from $3.1 billion in 2007 to $6.6 billion in 2012. Mobile media will become an important revenue stream for operators and content providers - particularly from 2010 onward. However, the US MME market still faces a number of significant barriers in the short term, including high pricing for end users, operator uncertainty over the optimal business model for the various services, and users' disappointment with early MME services as a result of device and network constraints.” Katrina Bond, Principal Analyst

US mobile service providers are looking to data services to drive revenue growth, and MME will be a critical part of this strategy. The US MME market is developing rapidly. End users and service and content providers are advancing from basic personalization services to more-sophisticated MME services that take advantage of upgraded network and handset capabilities. This report examines the drivers for and barriers to US MME market growth. It considers the overall market for MME services, and the market for mobile Web browsing and data access, as well as seven specific service categories:

• personalization
• music
• games
• TV and VoD
• paid information services
• adult content
• social networking and user-generated content.

• What is the size of the US MME market, and how will it develop during 2007- 2012?
• Which MME services will exhibit the fastest growth in terms of subscriber numbers and revenue?
• Which critical factors are driving MME market growth?
• Which critical factors are inhibiting the development of MME services?
• How are operators positioning themselves within the MME market?
• What is the status of the off-deck content market in the US, and how will this market develop?

• adoption rate
• subscribers
• average revenue per user
• average spend per active service user
• revenue
• prepaid and postpaid subscribers and revenue
• operator-billed and non-operator-billed revenue.
• In addition, subscriber and revenue forecasts are provided for the overall MME market, and for the market for mobile Web browsing and data access (including flat-rate data plans).

• Mobile network operators and MVNOs: senior executives, product managers and technology executives, to understand critical trends and opportunities in the US MME market, and to help identify strategies for success.
• Content and entertainment providers: senior executives, business development executives and product managers, to understand the expected growth of MME markets in the US and to identify strategic partners and opportunities.
• Handset and network equipment vendors: senior executives, business development and partnering executives, technology strategists, and product and platform developers, to assess the potential for MME services in the US and identify areas for collaboration and development.
• Software developers: senior executives, business development executives, and mobile platform and applications developers, to evaluate the strongest growth areas for MME services in the US and identify areas for collaboration and development.
• Financial institutions and venture capital firms: to understand the likely successes and failures in MME in the US market, and the strategies that different types of organization should adopt with regard to MME.