Forecast: Mobile music growing to $11B by 2011

Mobile downloads will account for almost 30 percent of global music industry revenues by 2011, a significant increase from the current 13 percent, according to a new forecast issued by market research firm Understanding & Solutions. The report says by 2011, mobile music will generate $11 billion in revenue, offsetting some of the decline in traditional music retail sales--according to Understanding & Solutions, Japan and the U.S. will drive the market, thanks to their concentrated operator bases and large pools of potential subscribers, while the fragmented European market will hinge on off-portal sales and third-party service providers. The forecast adds that user interfaces and software must continue to improve to make the mobile platform comparable with the online music experience.

"Looking to emerging markets, mobile could become the number one platform for music, where packaged CDs haven't gained traction due to piracy and lack of hardware ownership," said Understanding & Solutions consultant David Sidebottom in a prepared statement. "Both China and India are showing large revenue gains, which are being driven by strong mobile subscriber growth and the status associated with music-related personalized mobile products."

For more on the Understanding & Solutions forecast:
- read this release

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