Timo Argillander, a computer/mobile communications consultant at Digital Media Finland, who also writes the well-done Nokia Mobile TV Forum newsletter, has e-mailed a report of the IBC 2007 media conference in Amsterdam, including information about mobile television.
Timo writes that there wasn’t too much hype about mobile TV at IBC 2007, although most media companies and broadcasters are offering or expect to offer products. Several mobile TV channels were available for conference attendees to watch, although that’s not a big deal any more, he says.
Mobile TV statistics
Quoting statistics from the research firm of M:Metrics, he writes that 15.7 percent of cellular phones can receive cellular– or broadcast-based TV. Interestingly, the most watched videos are user generated rather than from traditional broadcasting companies.
In Italy, that has TV via 3G networks and via dedicated mobile TV networks, 72 percent of mobile TV viewers watch programs via DVB-H (dedicated) networks. However, one third of cellular users with DVB-H phones haven’t watched mobile TV, Timo says.
Standards vs. open markets
The view at the conference about the European Commission endorsing DVB-H was generally favorable because it fosters competition with a single standard, although some people are concerned with politicians making decisions about technology standards, he says. Regardless of any concerns, DVB-H is the winner in Europe, as readers of this weblog probably know.
(In the United States, as we well know, the government is much less interested than Europeans in mandating many standards, and that has advantages and disadvantages. That’s why we have GSM, CDMA and iDEN for cellular, and why cellular operators may select whatever mobile TV protocol they want. Verizon Wireless offers Qualcomm MediaFLO and AT&T/Cingular is slated to offer it this year. T-Mobile, that hasn’t yet launched a 3G network, hasn’t declared the mobile TV protocol it will utilize.)
Timo notes that, “in Asia the standards battle is still open: Korean DMB and Japanese ISDB-T are already mass-market; DVB-H is in operation or being trialed in several countries; China develops a technology of its own.” If you read this weblog, you’ve certainly read articles on the discussions about and implementations of mobile TV platforms around the world.
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