Forecast: Mobile broadcast TV revenues just $2.7B by 2013

While more than 330 million mobile subscribers worldwide will own broadcast TV-enabled handsets by 2013, fewer than 14 percent will sign up for premium mobile TV services according to a new forecast issued by market analysis firm Juniper Research. While forecasting annual worldwide end-user revenues of $2.7 billion by 2013, Juniper contends the development of handsets capable of receiving free-to-air analog and digital terrestrial TV signals will adversely impact the commercial prospects for dedicated mobile broadcast efforts.

"The development of terrestrial TV-capable receivers with comparatively low power consumption, and the availability of these receivers in mass market handsets, throws into question the business case for the deployment of a dedicated network in many markets," notes report author Dr. Windsor Holden in a prepared statement. "There will always be a market for some form of premium TV service on the mobile handset, and with broadcast TV in many markets likely to consist simply of the free-to-air terrestrial signals, the gap in the market is likely to be filled by streamed video-on-demand services over the 3G network."

Among other findings of the Juniper report, the U.S. will represent the largest single market for mobile broadcast TV services by 2013, edging out South Korea and China. MediaFLO services will likely launch in parts of Asia and across the U.K. by 2010, Juniper adds, anticipating streaming mobile TV service will enjoy greater adoption than originally expected, a growth the report credits to the reduction in anticipated deployment of dedicated mobile broadcast TV networks.

For more on the Juniper report:
- read this release

Related articles:
Mobile TV to grow at 60 percent CAGR thru 2010
Broadcasters make mobile TV moves