Sales of digital content, such as music and TV, through mobile phones will have soared by 2013, according to the latest forecast.

Juniper Research has predicted that roughly 50 per cent of all mobile phone users will have bought a digital good at least once through their mobile phone by 2013. On average, users are expected to make at least two payment transactions per month for digital goods within five years.

Western Europe, the Far East and China will account for half of all such sales by 2013.

The report’s author, Howard Wilcox, said that devices like the iPhone and 3G connections are driving the growth. He added that although typical transaction sizes will remain in the $3 to $5 (£2.50/€3.50) bracket for the next few years, the gross transaction value will have grown nearly seven fold by 2013.

But the report also suggests that mobile fans will increasingly use their handsets to buy physical goods too, resulting in an extension of online shopping.

Mobile-based payments have already taken off in Japan, where local carrier KDDI has teamed up with the Bank of Tokyo to incorporate a dedicated bank account in mobile phones. It’s hoped the service will make e-cash payments easier and faster.