Mobile TV services in for a big leap

Domestic market seen touching $360m in 2008

NEW DELHI: Indian mobile phone users are ready for TV on mobile services with the target market size expected to reach $360 million by 2008, according to the recent study by Springboard Research.

Mobile TV allows customer to view live television content on their mobile phones or other mobile devices that they get through traditional cable or pay TV subscriptions at home.

The report says that in the first year of operation, mobile TV could reach a penetration level of 6% or 12 million of the total mobile subscriber base in India. “India might follow Korea or the US for the adoption of this technology,” Ravi Shekhar Pandey, author of the study told DNA Money.

Pandey says Indian mobile customers’ average revenue per user (ARPU) is relatively lower than these countries, but the huge mobile subscriber base makes it a lucrative revenue stream for operators.

According to the report, 84% of mobile phone users are interested in using mobile TV service provided the service is commonly available and affordable.

Almost 60% of these will prefer watching the same content that they get on TV at home.  News, sports, music videos and game shows were the four dominant types of content that the surveyed users will prefer watching on mobile TV.

Public service broadcaster Doordarshan is the only company currently offering limited mobile TV service.

As of now mobile TV is not popular, but many companies are trying to push it,” Pandey said.