FEATURE: Will mobile video be the next big thing?

Will mobile video be the next big thing?

By Andrew Seybold

Welcome to my first column for FierceMobileContent. I have been writing a monthly column for FierceWireless for more than a year and have enjoyed the experience and the feedback I get from readers. I hope you will enjoy these columns as much as I enjoy writing them. If you want to see what you are in for, visit www.fiercewireless.com and search on my last name to see the types of things I have written about for FierceWireless, or go to our website www.andrewseybold.com and read my blog and COMMENTARY. You will notice that my blog is called "Tell It Like It Is" and there is a reason for this--I do tell it like it is, not how people want it to be. My company provides consulting services, educational sessions and articles, but I can tell you that our clients understand when they sign up for our services that even they are not protected if they do something that does not make sense to me. Those who know my style know that I tend to be pragmatic and I have no tolerance for those who repeat mistakes that have already been made in this industry.

The wireless network providers are concerned about getting more of us to use data services and take advantage of the content that is available. Ringtones, wallpaper and even audio downloads are so yesterday while video is supposed to be the next big thing, but will it? No one knows for sure. There is no market research for where we are headed. Yes, we can conduct focus groups--we can design questions to get any answers you want to support whatever market research you want to believe. How do they come up with projections for how much a specific industry will be worth in five years? Is it a guess, based on the past, the result of focus groups or a little of each? Well, my experience tells me that those who try to project the future will be wrong more than right and will make assumptions that just won't hold up.

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