Mobile Video Services - A Five-Year Global Market Forecast

Abstract

Video is increasingly making its way into the mobile space across developed and emerging markets. The availability of improved devices and networks combined with the prevalence of multimedia as an essential form of entertainment are all contributing to a higher level of adoption and spending on mobile video services. Pyramid Research estimates that the global number of users paying for mobile video services directly delivered to their handsets will grow five-fold between 2008 and 2014 to surpass 534m at the end of the period.

In this report, Pyramid Research analyzes the adoption and revenue opportunity for mobile video services, which include paid video clips, music videos, TV episodes, TV programming and movies. We analyze operators' strategies through seven country case studies: Brazil, Chile, China, India, Italy, Japan and the US.

• Netbooks are a strategic tool for MNOs and OEMs alike, until the global economy recovers and users are ready - and able to afford - to migrate to more sophisticated devices.
• Mobile video is developing at a rapid pace around the world: Pyramid Research forecasts that the number of global mobile video subscriptions will grow to 534m in 2014, reaching a penetration rate of 8.5% of total mobile subscriptions, up from the current 2.5% level.
• Asia-Pacific will be a crucial component of the mobile video opportunity. Already markets such as Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea lead in terms of mobile video penetration of subscriptions, but we also expect important uptake in India in the next five years.
• European markets, led by the region' s most advanced mobile video market, Italy, will also undergo major expansion.

• What are the revenue and user base potentials of the primary mobile TV business models?
• How important will mobile video be in terms of overall growth in mobile data and mobile application revenue?
• How do linear and non-linear mobile video services differ across markets?
• How do the mobile video opportunities in various geographical regions compare?
• Which types of mobile video services work in which markets?
• In the various countries examined, how rapidly will users adopt 3G+ networks?
• Where have factors such as regulatory restraints, M&A and partnering been especially important, and why?
• What are the available mobile video/TV services in the markets analyzed in the report?

Mobile operators

This report will help you develop and refine an effective mobile video strategy as well as identify new approaches to provisioning, pricing and content. It provides comparisons through case studies of a diverse set of emerging and developed markets, including the largest and most advanced ones globally. This will allow you to evaluate your market opportunity and benchmark your own tactics and performance.

Vendors

Identify and assess the opportunities for including mobile video and TV capabilities in your handsets and other equipment. Identify prospective customers whose needs match your strengths. This report will help you develop and evaluate the strategies that will position you to take effective advantage of upcoming developments in one of the most exciting mobile application fields.

Content providers

Discover your third-screen opportunity by exploring the market close-up, from an operator perspective. Learn what drives usage and where operators are placing their bets. This report will help you identify best practices and develop effective strategies for selling video content through the operator channel in diverse international markets.

Investors

Assess the key drivers of mobile video and TV services, examine the business models currently available in markets and anticipate future developments. This report offers you a thorough understanding of where mobile video services fit into the overall markets for mobile services. Use this analysis to learn who is best positioned for success, to identify opportunities and to assess upcoming opportunities in the overall mobile markets.

• Amazonia
• Alltel
• Aloha Partners
• America Movil
• Apple
• AT&T
• BBC World
• Bharti Airtel
• Bharti Tele-Venture
• Brasil Telecom
• Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL)
• Carrefour (MVNO)
• Central China TV
• China Mobile
• China Netcom
• China Telecom
• China Tietong
• China Unicom
• Claro Chile
• Claro Brasil
• CNN
• Comcast Communications
• Coop (MVNO)
• Crown Castle
• Discovery Communications
• Entel PCS
• H3G Italia
• Hiwire
• HTC
• Hulu
• Hutchinson Essar
• Hutchinson Telecommunications International
• Idea Cellular
• KDDI
• Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL)
• Mediacom
• MobiTV
• Modeo
• Movistar
• Movistar Chile
• MTV
• MTN South Africa
• MTNL
• NET Servicos
• NTT Docomo
• Nokia
• Oi
• Qualcomm
• Poste Italiane
• Rede Globo
• Reliance Communications
• Reliance Mobile
• Research in Motion (RIM)
• Shanghai Media Group
• Sky
• Sling Media
• Softbank
• Sony
• Sprint-Nextel
• Tata Teleservices
• Telecom Italia Mobile
• Telefonica
• Telefonica Chile
• Telefonica CTC
• Telemar
• Telemig
• Terra Networks
• T-Mobile USA
• Verizon Communications
• Verizon Wireless
• Virgin Mobile
• Vimeo
• Vivo Participacoes
• Vodafone Essar
• Vodafone Italia
• VTR
• Wind Telecomunicazioni
• YouTube (Google)

Methodology

Competition for viewers' attention and spending on video content is nothing less than fierce, providing them with multiple options for accessing content. As portable DVD players and MP3 players proliferate, video content reaches beyond the television and becomes widely available in non-linear formats. The Internet is another major force behind the growth of digital entertainment: Widespread access to broadband in homes, offices and schools has extended video to PCs and laptops, and viewing downloaded or streamed content - live or recorded - is becoming commonplace for many. Advanced mobile services are yet another factor pushing the development of digital entertainment. Mobile data usage is exploding, and the mobile hanset is becoming a form of computing device, creating demand for content for its so-called third screen.

Following the same adoption trends as digital music, mobile video is flowing from several sources. Some of the delivery channels circumvent the involvement of mobile operators, including:

• Side-loaded files that come from a personal computer or another device. These files typically originate from Internet sites or from users' personal media or video cameras.
• Content streamed over the mobile network.
• Content downloaded over the mobile network.
• Content broadcast on a secondary network that requires an on-board receiver, used for mobile TV.