James Myring, associate director of Continental Research in the U.K., compares mobile television with programs viewed via the Internet, and he isn’t as optimistic about the former.
He writes:
“Providing mobile TV free in return for receiving advertising offers perhaps the best route for boosting the numbers watching mobile TV. However, the obstacles….mean that it is difficult to see it fulfilling much more than a niche viewing role in the medium term.
“The most desired type of programming is likely to be very short clips, targeted at a teenage/early 20s audience who spend a lot of time out of the home.
“There are also still technical problems with mobile TV to overcome, users cite dissatisfaction with the size of the picture, cost, and in particular the choice of programmes available to watch and the geographical coverage in which you can receive the service. This last point is important as train and coach or bus journeys provide ideal opportunities to reach an audience with considerable free time.
“However, the 3G signal required to receive the transmissions can be patchy.”
IPTV looks better
TV via the Internet looks more promising, Myring cites some consumer reasons, such as a greater variety of programs on the Internet and the ability to watch American programs before they are broadcast in the U.K.
The capability of storing large numbers of older programs also is a big advantage, “especially in the U.K. there is substantial nostalgia for favourite old shows,” he writes. Compared to video on demand from cable companies, Web-only TV offers not only a large selection but also the ability to watch it almost anywhere and without requiring any cable box.
(Watching anywhere is not, alas, universal. I’d love to watch BBC programs on its new iPlayer [see left] but you have to reside in the U.K. I’d seriously consider paying a reasonable fee per month to watch BBC programs on my computer. Yeah, I know BBC America is available on cable but I’d still want an Internet option. I paid for the no-commercials CNN Pipeline but that, unfortunately, has been discontinued in favor of a free service that isn’t as good. However, it seems CNN is improving the new free version.)
On-demand cable versus wireless
Myring says video on demand offers the advantage of providing high quality programs on a large screen. However, he says that as IPTV becomes increasingly popular, technology could help improve Web-based TV.
Continental’s research indicates that more people will download archived programs via the Internet, although programs streamed via the Internet or viewed on phones also will grow significantly (see below).
Concluding, he discusses the revolutionary potential of the Internet versus wireless. “Whilst broadband internet access has revolutionised a number of industries from travel to music, for several new mobile technologies (such as photo messaging and mobile internet access), reality has not lived up to early (over) promise.
“Not all of the new convergence technologies will succeed and flourish. Generally the winners so far look to be technologies that are based on broadband internet access.”
I’m hopeful about that business strategies, additional content and advanced technology can overcome problems with mobile TV. With developments in DVB-H and MediaFLO, for example, plus the possibility that Apple’s iPhone will spark significant numbers of consumers to demand phones with larger, higher resolution screens, mobile TV has a long way to go before the naysayers are proven correct.
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