Mobile telly is different

Not just another channel for broadcasters

By John Oates • Get more from this author

Posted in Mobile, 4th October 2006 13:20 GMT

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Traditional broadcasters need to understand that mobile TV is not just another channel but must be used differently if they are to get to grips with the new market.

Content will either have to be re-purposed for mobile or created specifically for mobile phones to be successful, according to Logica content and media VP Richard Porter. The success of user-generated content on services like YouTube means broadcasters will need to alter their scattergun approach. Porter used the example of Channel4's FourDocs programmes.

People will not use mobile TV in the same way as they use their plasma screens at home.

Porter said: "There are a lot of people still dancing round the edges of this market - like Google and Yahoo! No one is sure who will win or which revenue model will work best."

He expects mainstream take-up to be 18 to 24 months away for western Europe and longer for the US, dependent on handsets and government freeing up spectrum.

He predicts that ad-supported content might work - especially if the ads are personalised and targeted at the user. Porter also said that what broadcast really means is a big, fat pipe to the mobile.

This could be used to download content rather than watch it live -so you could wake up in the morning to the option of watching a tailored video business news briefing on your phone which downloaded over night. ®

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