Telephia released some figures in response to Google buying YouTube, I’m not sure whether they’ve been seen before but I figure there’re worth putting up again to reflect on the deal. There are nearly 8 million americans who use their mobile phone to capture video, according to Telephia, with the most popular handset choice for this being the Razr V3 series.
Adoption Rate for Video Capture Among Mobile Subscribers (Europe, U.S. and Canada)
Country — Share %
Spain — 15%
Italy — 14%
UK — 12%
Sweden — 10%
France — 9%
Germany — 9%
Canada — 4%
US — 3%
Friday, October 13, 2006
Monday, October 02, 2006
MOBILE INTERNET USAGE ON THE RISE
The number of subscribers accessing the internet via
mobile phones is continuing to grow. According to
figures announced today by the Mobile Data Association
(MDA), a total of 13.2 million people used their
phones for downloads and browsing the mobile internet
in the UK during July 2006, in line with an upward
global trend.
Accordingly, the MDA have looked at what sites
consumers are visiting and have compiled a top 10 of
the types of pages most accessed across the UK via a
mobile device during July:
1. Google
2. Chat sites (including operator sites)
3. WAP Directories (eg Twilightwap)
4. Other search sites (eg Yahoo)
5. BBC
6. Games/Wallpapers/Ringtones
7. Mobile entertainment sites (eg celebrity news
information)
8. MSN
9. Mobile communities/blogging (eg Jumbuck)
10. Shopping sites (eg Ebay)
Predictably, users appear to be accessing mobile
versions of the most popular internet sites, but with
a growing number of ‘mobile community’ websites
appearing for use on mobile handsets, where users can
create their own web pages for example, the UK’s
increasing passion for blogging and sharing
information looks set to be indulged further via the
mobile internet.
For information on how to set up your phone to use the
mobile internet and for a list of sites to visit on
your handset, please visit:
http://www.text.it/mobileweb/tips.cfm
~ends~
Notes to Editors –
WAP user definition as agreed by four GSM Network
operators (O2, T-Mobile, Vodafone and Orange) is as
follows:
the number of unique customers who are accessing the
internet on a mobile device via any portal at least
once in the reporting month.
The MDA plan to issue mobile internet user figures on
a monthly basis, having previously issued figures
relating to the number of WAP page impressions viewed.
The method for counting has been revised to give a
clearer picture of how many people are accessing the
service each month.
Top 10 site information not weighted by usage –
aggregate information taken from UK network operators.
Figures exclude mobile intranet for business usage (eg
mobile e-mail)
About the Mobile Data Association and www.text.it -
November 2005 marked the launch of Phase 3 of the
MDA’s generic awareness campaign to promote the
advantages of the mobile internet across all networks,
and provide a current information service through the
text.it website for both consumers and business users.
The Mobile Data Association (MDA) was established in
1994 to increase awareness of mobile data amongst
users and their advisers. The MDA acts as a focal
point for its members, (vendors and users) and outside
parties interested in knowing more about the industry
The MDA announces the total number of mobile internet
users on behalf of the UK GSM Network operators on a
monthly basis. These figures are announced during the
fourth week of the following month. Also UK text
messaging figures are released by the MDA during the
third week of the following month.
For further information visit the MDA website at
www.themda.org or the Text It Campaign web site at
www.text.it
Mike Short, MDA Chairman is available for comment.
mobile phones is continuing to grow. According to
figures announced today by the Mobile Data Association
(MDA), a total of 13.2 million people used their
phones for downloads and browsing the mobile internet
in the UK during July 2006, in line with an upward
global trend.
Accordingly, the MDA have looked at what sites
consumers are visiting and have compiled a top 10 of
the types of pages most accessed across the UK via a
mobile device during July:
1. Google
2. Chat sites (including operator sites)
3. WAP Directories (eg Twilightwap)
4. Other search sites (eg Yahoo)
5. BBC
6. Games/Wallpapers/Ringtones
7. Mobile entertainment sites (eg celebrity news
information)
8. MSN
9. Mobile communities/blogging (eg Jumbuck)
10. Shopping sites (eg Ebay)
Predictably, users appear to be accessing mobile
versions of the most popular internet sites, but with
a growing number of ‘mobile community’ websites
appearing for use on mobile handsets, where users can
create their own web pages for example, the UK’s
increasing passion for blogging and sharing
information looks set to be indulged further via the
mobile internet.
For information on how to set up your phone to use the
mobile internet and for a list of sites to visit on
your handset, please visit:
http://www.text.it/mobileweb/tips.cfm
~ends~
Notes to Editors –
WAP user definition as agreed by four GSM Network
operators (O2, T-Mobile, Vodafone and Orange) is as
follows:
the number of unique customers who are accessing the
internet on a mobile device via any portal at least
once in the reporting month.
The MDA plan to issue mobile internet user figures on
a monthly basis, having previously issued figures
relating to the number of WAP page impressions viewed.
The method for counting has been revised to give a
clearer picture of how many people are accessing the
service each month.
Top 10 site information not weighted by usage –
aggregate information taken from UK network operators.
Figures exclude mobile intranet for business usage (eg
mobile e-mail)
About the Mobile Data Association and www.text.it -
November 2005 marked the launch of Phase 3 of the
MDA’s generic awareness campaign to promote the
advantages of the mobile internet across all networks,
and provide a current information service through the
text.it website for both consumers and business users.
The Mobile Data Association (MDA) was established in
1994 to increase awareness of mobile data amongst
users and their advisers. The MDA acts as a focal
point for its members, (vendors and users) and outside
parties interested in knowing more about the industry
The MDA announces the total number of mobile internet
users on behalf of the UK GSM Network operators on a
monthly basis. These figures are announced during the
fourth week of the following month. Also UK text
messaging figures are released by the MDA during the
third week of the following month.
For further information visit the MDA website at
www.themda.org or the Text It Campaign web site at
www.text.it
Mike Short, MDA Chairman is available for comment.
Monday, September 11, 2006
34.6 Million US Mobile Web Users - Aug 2006
via :http://wapreview.com/blog/?p=152
The full PDF is at:
http://www.telephia.com/documents/InternetandDeviceReleaseJune2006v68.14.06FINAL.pdf
The full PDF is at:
http://www.telephia.com/documents/InternetandDeviceReleaseJune2006v68.14.06FINAL.pdf
34.6 Million US Mobile Web Users - Aug 2006
via :http://wapreview.com/blog/?p=152
The full PDF is at:
http://www.telephia.com/documents/InternetandDeviceReleaseJune2006v68.14.06FINAL.pdf
The full PDF is at:
http://www.telephia.com/documents/InternetandDeviceReleaseJune2006v68.14.06FINAL.pdf
2.5 billion connections today - 3 billion expected by end 2007
From: http://opengardensblog.futuretext.com/archives/2006/09/more_wireless_s.html
It just shows that the best is yet to come with this industry!
2.5 billion connections today - 3 billion expected by end 2007
Sometime yesterday, the total number of cellular connections in the world reached 2.5 billion, having passed through the 2 billion mark just 12 months ago, according to estimates from Wireless Intelligence - a venture between Ovum and the GSM Association.
"The cellular industry took 20 years to reach 1 billion connections, three years to reach 2 billion connections and is on target to reach its third billion in a period of just over two years," says Martin Garner, Director of Wireless Intelligence.
"Worldwide growth is currently running at over 40 million new connections per month - the highest volume of growth the market has ever seen."
Over the four quarters to the end of September 2006, world total net additions were 484 million. Of these, 41% were in Asia Pacific. Eastern Europe and Latin America together accounted for 30% of the growth. Africa took 10% of the growth and the relatively mature markets of Western Europe, North America and the Middle East took the remaining 20% in more or less equal measure.
"Most of the growth is coming from cellular markets with lower levels of market penetration than exists in Europe for example," says Garner. "These are often referred to as "emerging markets", although many of them now have very large, well developed and sophisticated cellular markets with market penetration moving quickly towards European levels."
The top ten countries for volume of new connections over the last year were China, India, Russia, USA, Pakistan, Ukraine, Brazil, Indonesia, Nigeria and Bangladesh. Between them, they account for over half of the growth in the world cellular market over the last 12 months.
A quarter of the growth is coming from China and India. China's market is still expanding at more than 5 million new connections per month. India has moved rapidly up the top ten list, with the rate of new connections quadrupling over the last 18 months to reach a level very close to China's.
According to Wireless Intelligence forecasts the next half billion new connections will take a little longer to be added - 16 months - meaning that the market is on track to reach 3 billion connections around the end of 2007.
It just shows that the best is yet to come with this industry!
2.5 billion connections today - 3 billion expected by end 2007
Sometime yesterday, the total number of cellular connections in the world reached 2.5 billion, having passed through the 2 billion mark just 12 months ago, according to estimates from Wireless Intelligence - a venture between Ovum and the GSM Association.
"The cellular industry took 20 years to reach 1 billion connections, three years to reach 2 billion connections and is on target to reach its third billion in a period of just over two years," says Martin Garner, Director of Wireless Intelligence.
"Worldwide growth is currently running at over 40 million new connections per month - the highest volume of growth the market has ever seen."
Over the four quarters to the end of September 2006, world total net additions were 484 million. Of these, 41% were in Asia Pacific. Eastern Europe and Latin America together accounted for 30% of the growth. Africa took 10% of the growth and the relatively mature markets of Western Europe, North America and the Middle East took the remaining 20% in more or less equal measure.
"Most of the growth is coming from cellular markets with lower levels of market penetration than exists in Europe for example," says Garner. "These are often referred to as "emerging markets", although many of them now have very large, well developed and sophisticated cellular markets with market penetration moving quickly towards European levels."
The top ten countries for volume of new connections over the last year were China, India, Russia, USA, Pakistan, Ukraine, Brazil, Indonesia, Nigeria and Bangladesh. Between them, they account for over half of the growth in the world cellular market over the last 12 months.
A quarter of the growth is coming from China and India. China's market is still expanding at more than 5 million new connections per month. India has moved rapidly up the top ten list, with the rate of new connections quadrupling over the last 18 months to reach a level very close to China's.
According to Wireless Intelligence forecasts the next half billion new connections will take a little longer to be added - 16 months - meaning that the market is on track to reach 3 billion connections around the end of 2007.
Thursday, September 07, 2006
Globally, 5% of people online have a blog
From http://www.innovationcreators.com/2006/08/globally_5_of_people_online_ha.html
According to Internet World Statistics, as of June 30, 2006, Globally, there were 1,043,104,886 online.
According to technorati, as of August 29th, 2006, there were 52.5 million blogs. Technorati does not including My Space pages and also attempts to exclude splogs.
52.5 / 1043 = 5.033%
Assuming that most people only have one blog, this means that 5% of the world's online population now blogs.
However, also according to Technorati, the number of blogs is doubling every six months. Internet World Statistics says that the number of users grew by 189% between 2000 and 2005. That implies a 7% growth rate every six months.
If you put those trends together, by June 2008, more than 50% of Internet users will have a blog.
These numbers undoubtedly represent a high end prediction.
It is more likely that the growth rate of blogging will slow down before 2008.
However, entrepreneurs are continuing to develop new reasons why individuals would want to have a web address, even if they do not use that URL to produce a traditional blog.
For example Identity 2.0 efforts, such as SXIP, rely upon end users being able to control and present their identity certificate from a unique URL.
This combined with trends like photocasting, where family members and friends share photos through a unique URL are likely to continue the demand.
Finally, professional requirements will encourage more and more people to set up a blog. Blogs are a proven way of building a social network, of fostering your professional reputation, and of demonstrating your capabilities. How far are we from the day when most hiring managers for senior positions include a check of your blog as part of their due diligence process?
According to Internet World Statistics, as of June 30, 2006, Globally, there were 1,043,104,886 online.
According to technorati, as of August 29th, 2006, there were 52.5 million blogs. Technorati does not including My Space pages and also attempts to exclude splogs.
52.5 / 1043 = 5.033%
Assuming that most people only have one blog, this means that 5% of the world's online population now blogs.
However, also according to Technorati, the number of blogs is doubling every six months. Internet World Statistics says that the number of users grew by 189% between 2000 and 2005. That implies a 7% growth rate every six months.
If you put those trends together, by June 2008, more than 50% of Internet users will have a blog.
These numbers undoubtedly represent a high end prediction.
It is more likely that the growth rate of blogging will slow down before 2008.
However, entrepreneurs are continuing to develop new reasons why individuals would want to have a web address, even if they do not use that URL to produce a traditional blog.
For example Identity 2.0 efforts, such as SXIP, rely upon end users being able to control and present their identity certificate from a unique URL.
This combined with trends like photocasting, where family members and friends share photos through a unique URL are likely to continue the demand.
Finally, professional requirements will encourage more and more people to set up a blog. Blogs are a proven way of building a social network, of fostering your professional reputation, and of demonstrating your capabilities. How far are we from the day when most hiring managers for senior positions include a check of your blog as part of their due diligence process?
Friday, August 18, 2006
US Wireless Data Market: Mid Year Update
US Wireless Data Market: Mid Year Update
By Chetan Sharma
• US wireless data market is growing at an impressive rate. Top 4 US carriers (Cingular, Verizon, Sprint Nextel, and T-Mobile) accounted for over $6.3B in wireless data revenues for the first half of 2006. Overall, wireless data service revenues exceeded $7B and the figures are likely to exceed $15B for the year 2006. This is almost a 75% jump from end-of-2005 number of $8.6B. The growth rate slowed down only slightly from 2004-2005 growth rate of 87%. SMS and data transport still drives bulk of data revenues but their percentage share is declining.
• Among the top 4 US carriers, Verizon has made the most impressive strides in the last 4 quarters, increasing their wireless data revenues by a whopping 114%. Next Sprint with 71%, T-Mobile with 65%, and Cingular with 54% also netted impressive gains.
• Verizon became the first US carrier to net over $1B in wireless data revenues in a quarter. Cingular was close second with $979M and Sprint with $935M are likely to cross the $1B mark next quarter.
• Sprint retains its leadership position of highest wireless data ARPU in terms of absolute dollar amount at $7.25 but lost its number one spot in the % data ARPU to Verizon which now leads the US carriers at almost 13%. Average data ARPU is now $6.3 or 12%.
• Overall ARPU (voice + data) increased slightly from Q106 but declined $0.27 from Q405. The general trend is towards slow decline. Data revenue is barely keeping up with the decline in voice ARPU. On an average voice ARPU has declined 8% from a year ago and data ARPU has increased 48%. Average Overall ARPU was $53.04. Sprint led with $62 followed by T-Mobile at $51, Verizon at $49.7, and Cingular with $48.4.
• If the current trends hold, Verizon Wireless is likely to surpass Cingular Wireless as number 1 US carrier by Q307.
• US had about 7M 3G subscribers by Q206, primarily from Verizon and Sprint Nextel. With Cingular joining the fray, the 3G growth is expected to accelerate with 2007 being the inflection year.
• US wireless subscriber penetration stands at approximately 74% and is likely to exceed 78% by the end of the year.
• Top 4 carriers added 12.7M subscribers from Jan-Jun 2006.
• The top 4 US carrier account for 79% of the subscribers, 86% of the service revenues, and approximately 95% of the wireless data revenues.
• US Off-net revenues for the year are likely to exceed $750M.
• Data ARPU of CDMA/EV-DO carriers was 20% higher than GSM/WCDMA carriers.
• Several high-profile MVNOs were also launched in the last few months and the overall results have been disappointing primarily due to poor execution, instant crowding effect, and competition from big 4.
• US wireless carriers are steadily climbing in their wireless data performance as compared to their peers worldwide. Verizon, Cingular, and Sprint ranked number 4, 5, and 6 respectively, amongst the top 10 operators worldwide in terms of total wireless data revenue generated for first half of 2006.
• The #1 carrier worldwide in terms of total wireless data revenue for the first six months of 2006 is NTT DoCoMo which has maintained its position for a number of years. It is now generating almost $900M/month from wireless data revenues.
• The top 10 carriers in terms of total wireless data revenues for 1H06 in order of rank are NTT DoCoMo, China Mobile, KDDI, Verizon Wireless, Cingular Wireless, Sprint Nextel, O2 UK, Vodafone Japan, SK Telecom, and China Unicom. (6 Asian, 3 US, 1 Europe. Who says US is behind). Vodafone Germany, TMO Germany, and TMO US are also closing in.
• All the top 10 carriers in the list exceeded $1B in data revenues for the first six months of 2006. China Mobile and China Unicom benefited from their huge subscriber base of 274M and 135M respectively while DoCoMo and KDDI did well because they are generating over $17 (or 28%) in wireless data ARPU.
• The top 10 carriers accounted for almost $24B in wireless data revenues for the first six months of 2006. The top 10 carriers account for approximately 700M (or approx 28%) subscribers worldwide.
• In terms of wireless investments, over $2.8B was invested in wireless related companies/startups from Jan-Jun 2006 (this figure jumped to $4.1B in July). Source: Rutberg. Mobile TV/Video, Mobile Personalization, Mobile Search and Advertising, Semiconductor, Carrier infrastructure, Device design and development are hot areas. M&A activity also picked up quite significantly.
• WiMax industry got a big boost with almost $1B investment in Clearwire and due to Sprint Nextel’s announcement of WiMax deployment. Sigh of relief for Intel and Samsung. Puts pressure on Qualcomm. Maybe Intel will renegotiate with Clearwire.
• Worldwide Handset market share: Nokia and Motorola dominated with 35% and 23% market share respectively. Samsung with 12% stands third. Source: iSuppli. Though Apple’s iPhone rumors have been clouding the market, it is Motorola which continues to lead in launching must-have handsets. Windows mobile is starting to make serious inroads in the handset market but performance issues and high price points deter mass market adoption.
By Chetan Sharma
• US wireless data market is growing at an impressive rate. Top 4 US carriers (Cingular, Verizon, Sprint Nextel, and T-Mobile) accounted for over $6.3B in wireless data revenues for the first half of 2006. Overall, wireless data service revenues exceeded $7B and the figures are likely to exceed $15B for the year 2006. This is almost a 75% jump from end-of-2005 number of $8.6B. The growth rate slowed down only slightly from 2004-2005 growth rate of 87%. SMS and data transport still drives bulk of data revenues but their percentage share is declining.
• Among the top 4 US carriers, Verizon has made the most impressive strides in the last 4 quarters, increasing their wireless data revenues by a whopping 114%. Next Sprint with 71%, T-Mobile with 65%, and Cingular with 54% also netted impressive gains.
• Verizon became the first US carrier to net over $1B in wireless data revenues in a quarter. Cingular was close second with $979M and Sprint with $935M are likely to cross the $1B mark next quarter.
• Sprint retains its leadership position of highest wireless data ARPU in terms of absolute dollar amount at $7.25 but lost its number one spot in the % data ARPU to Verizon which now leads the US carriers at almost 13%. Average data ARPU is now $6.3 or 12%.
• Overall ARPU (voice + data) increased slightly from Q106 but declined $0.27 from Q405. The general trend is towards slow decline. Data revenue is barely keeping up with the decline in voice ARPU. On an average voice ARPU has declined 8% from a year ago and data ARPU has increased 48%. Average Overall ARPU was $53.04. Sprint led with $62 followed by T-Mobile at $51, Verizon at $49.7, and Cingular with $48.4.
• If the current trends hold, Verizon Wireless is likely to surpass Cingular Wireless as number 1 US carrier by Q307.
• US had about 7M 3G subscribers by Q206, primarily from Verizon and Sprint Nextel. With Cingular joining the fray, the 3G growth is expected to accelerate with 2007 being the inflection year.
• US wireless subscriber penetration stands at approximately 74% and is likely to exceed 78% by the end of the year.
• Top 4 carriers added 12.7M subscribers from Jan-Jun 2006.
• The top 4 US carrier account for 79% of the subscribers, 86% of the service revenues, and approximately 95% of the wireless data revenues.
• US Off-net revenues for the year are likely to exceed $750M.
• Data ARPU of CDMA/EV-DO carriers was 20% higher than GSM/WCDMA carriers.
• Several high-profile MVNOs were also launched in the last few months and the overall results have been disappointing primarily due to poor execution, instant crowding effect, and competition from big 4.
• US wireless carriers are steadily climbing in their wireless data performance as compared to their peers worldwide. Verizon, Cingular, and Sprint ranked number 4, 5, and 6 respectively, amongst the top 10 operators worldwide in terms of total wireless data revenue generated for first half of 2006.
• The #1 carrier worldwide in terms of total wireless data revenue for the first six months of 2006 is NTT DoCoMo which has maintained its position for a number of years. It is now generating almost $900M/month from wireless data revenues.
• The top 10 carriers in terms of total wireless data revenues for 1H06 in order of rank are NTT DoCoMo, China Mobile, KDDI, Verizon Wireless, Cingular Wireless, Sprint Nextel, O2 UK, Vodafone Japan, SK Telecom, and China Unicom. (6 Asian, 3 US, 1 Europe. Who says US is behind). Vodafone Germany, TMO Germany, and TMO US are also closing in.
• All the top 10 carriers in the list exceeded $1B in data revenues for the first six months of 2006. China Mobile and China Unicom benefited from their huge subscriber base of 274M and 135M respectively while DoCoMo and KDDI did well because they are generating over $17 (or 28%) in wireless data ARPU.
• The top 10 carriers accounted for almost $24B in wireless data revenues for the first six months of 2006. The top 10 carriers account for approximately 700M (or approx 28%) subscribers worldwide.
• In terms of wireless investments, over $2.8B was invested in wireless related companies/startups from Jan-Jun 2006 (this figure jumped to $4.1B in July). Source: Rutberg. Mobile TV/Video, Mobile Personalization, Mobile Search and Advertising, Semiconductor, Carrier infrastructure, Device design and development are hot areas. M&A activity also picked up quite significantly.
• WiMax industry got a big boost with almost $1B investment in Clearwire and due to Sprint Nextel’s announcement of WiMax deployment. Sigh of relief for Intel and Samsung. Puts pressure on Qualcomm. Maybe Intel will renegotiate with Clearwire.
• Worldwide Handset market share: Nokia and Motorola dominated with 35% and 23% market share respectively. Samsung with 12% stands third. Source: iSuppli. Though Apple’s iPhone rumors have been clouding the market, it is Motorola which continues to lead in launching must-have handsets. Windows mobile is starting to make serious inroads in the handset market but performance issues and high price points deter mass market adoption.
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Indian mobile market stats
[via mobilepundit]
By 2010, the report estimates mobile data to be a $10-billion (Rs 43,000-crore) market in India. The report says that EBITDA from data revenue could go up to 65%, compared to 30% or so from voice.
To put things into perspective, India has 108 million homes with TV, 90 million mobile users and 7.5 million Internet subscribers.
So whats all this fuss about mobile entertainment.
Indian Idol got more than 55 million votes via SMS between Nov 04 to Mar 05. At Rs 3 per SMS, that is Rs 16.5 crore (Rs 165 million). The telecom companies made Rs 11.5 crore (Rs 115 million), and Sony about Rs 5 crore (Rs 50 million).
Radio Mirchi gets 40,000-45,000 SMSes a day.
Indian music industry got about Rs 140 crore (Rs 1.40 billion) or 20% of its legitimate revenues from mobile music in 2005.
Shridhar Subramaniam, MD, Sony-BMG says a hit film can generate Rs 1-1.2 crore - about 5% of an album’s sale on mobile revenues. Its big mobile hit of the year is Rang De Basanti.
Saregama makes half its money on ringtones through its catalogue. It “sells nothing but ringtones. With new releases, we have the rights to images and wallpapers”, says Sarkar.
The big media firms — Star, Sony and BCCL, among others — have set up entire divisions for mobile entertainment.
Star CEO Peter Mukerjea has maintained that mobile telephony should eventually bring in 30% of the company’s revenues. And Sony will set up its own backend for digital downloads this year.
Of Reliance’s 18 million subscribers, more than 10 million use data regularly. Roughly half its data revenues comes from film-related content.
* At the end of December 2005 R World, its mobile portal had 5.3 million visitors.
* About 32% of the portal’s revenues came from ringtones and 20% from films.
* Games and cricket form a respectable 8-9 per cent each.
What worked for Mobile VAS in India.
Most Indians use the mass transport system like the Japanese and unlike the Americans who drive cars to work.
Customers are cool with paying for information on the mobile unlike the Internet.
Mobile phone is bridging the digital divide (that the Internet was supposed to)
in smaller towns and villages for entertainment and information.
India has collecting societies - the Indian Performing Rights Society (IPRS) and Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL). According to rates prescribed by PPL, anywhere between 25-40% comes back to music firms.
The media companies are not the ones to be left behind.
For media buying and planning firms such as Group M, all the work with mobile phones is “brand centric,” says Tushar Vyas, its national director (interaction).
That means that if Fa’s creative and media plan demands that there should be a mobile play, say, a contest, poll or plain branding, then Group M will look at content or partnerships where it can promote Fa on the mobile phone.
Advertisers are trying their best to get their two bits in. So, Thums Up has a game it designed with Mobile2Win, Castrol has its own ringtone (and 100,000 people actually downloaded it), and Reliance offers bill payment on R World, railway bookings, and even exam results.
Can any article on mobile entertainment be complete without a mention of the ongoing feud between the operators and aggregators on revenue shares.
Currently, the Indian market is split roughly at 60:30:10 between mobile operators, media companies and aggregators. Mobile operators argue that they make the investment and control the consumer, so they should keep a lion’s share of the mobile data pie.
Prasad of Reliance says that internationally, operators pay revenue share only on the basis of actual downloads. In India, the figure on which this is calculated includes network usage and subscription fee and, therefore, the percentage that comes back to the operator has to be larger.
Ultimately, in a fragmented, oversupplied content market, it should be easy to get good stuff if you have a sense of what will work and what won’t. Media companies have a nose for it, mobile companies don’t.
So, as the need for differentiated content, especially with TV, songs, news and more audio-visual content becoming important, expect much more poaching from programming departments of TV channels, and lots and lots of loose alliances.
Some quotable quotes:
Viren Popli, senior vice-president, (interactive), Star India
“The VCR gave back to consumers the concept of time; the mobile will give them back the concept of space. You can consume entertainment when you want and where you want it.”
Raj Singh, director, Activemedia Technology
“Only 60 million people know English. Hindi is where the eyeballs are”
Hemant Sachdev, director (marketing and communications), Bharti Tele-Ventures
“The Indian consumer is willing to pay a premium for VAS”
Other notable facts:
India has one of the lowest spectrum allocation per GSM operator in the world, about 6 Mhz against, over 25 in the UK or over 20 in China.
Just 15-20% of the phones in India have colour screens and/or cameras.
The effective rate per minute has moved from Rs 1.50 to Re 0.95, while costs per minute have been chopped from Rs 1.25 to Re 0.87 on its way to becoming Rs 0.8.
By 2010, the report estimates mobile data to be a $10-billion (Rs 43,000-crore) market in India. The report says that EBITDA from data revenue could go up to 65%, compared to 30% or so from voice.
To put things into perspective, India has 108 million homes with TV, 90 million mobile users and 7.5 million Internet subscribers.
So whats all this fuss about mobile entertainment.
Indian Idol got more than 55 million votes via SMS between Nov 04 to Mar 05. At Rs 3 per SMS, that is Rs 16.5 crore (Rs 165 million). The telecom companies made Rs 11.5 crore (Rs 115 million), and Sony about Rs 5 crore (Rs 50 million).
Radio Mirchi gets 40,000-45,000 SMSes a day.
Indian music industry got about Rs 140 crore (Rs 1.40 billion) or 20% of its legitimate revenues from mobile music in 2005.
Shridhar Subramaniam, MD, Sony-BMG says a hit film can generate Rs 1-1.2 crore - about 5% of an album’s sale on mobile revenues. Its big mobile hit of the year is Rang De Basanti.
Saregama makes half its money on ringtones through its catalogue. It “sells nothing but ringtones. With new releases, we have the rights to images and wallpapers”, says Sarkar.
The big media firms — Star, Sony and BCCL, among others — have set up entire divisions for mobile entertainment.
Star CEO Peter Mukerjea has maintained that mobile telephony should eventually bring in 30% of the company’s revenues. And Sony will set up its own backend for digital downloads this year.
Of Reliance’s 18 million subscribers, more than 10 million use data regularly. Roughly half its data revenues comes from film-related content.
* At the end of December 2005 R World, its mobile portal had 5.3 million visitors.
* About 32% of the portal’s revenues came from ringtones and 20% from films.
* Games and cricket form a respectable 8-9 per cent each.
What worked for Mobile VAS in India.
Most Indians use the mass transport system like the Japanese and unlike the Americans who drive cars to work.
Customers are cool with paying for information on the mobile unlike the Internet.
Mobile phone is bridging the digital divide (that the Internet was supposed to)
in smaller towns and villages for entertainment and information.
India has collecting societies - the Indian Performing Rights Society (IPRS) and Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL). According to rates prescribed by PPL, anywhere between 25-40% comes back to music firms.
The media companies are not the ones to be left behind.
For media buying and planning firms such as Group M, all the work with mobile phones is “brand centric,” says Tushar Vyas, its national director (interaction).
That means that if Fa’s creative and media plan demands that there should be a mobile play, say, a contest, poll or plain branding, then Group M will look at content or partnerships where it can promote Fa on the mobile phone.
Advertisers are trying their best to get their two bits in. So, Thums Up has a game it designed with Mobile2Win, Castrol has its own ringtone (and 100,000 people actually downloaded it), and Reliance offers bill payment on R World, railway bookings, and even exam results.
Can any article on mobile entertainment be complete without a mention of the ongoing feud between the operators and aggregators on revenue shares.
Currently, the Indian market is split roughly at 60:30:10 between mobile operators, media companies and aggregators. Mobile operators argue that they make the investment and control the consumer, so they should keep a lion’s share of the mobile data pie.
Prasad of Reliance says that internationally, operators pay revenue share only on the basis of actual downloads. In India, the figure on which this is calculated includes network usage and subscription fee and, therefore, the percentage that comes back to the operator has to be larger.
Ultimately, in a fragmented, oversupplied content market, it should be easy to get good stuff if you have a sense of what will work and what won’t. Media companies have a nose for it, mobile companies don’t.
So, as the need for differentiated content, especially with TV, songs, news and more audio-visual content becoming important, expect much more poaching from programming departments of TV channels, and lots and lots of loose alliances.
Some quotable quotes:
Viren Popli, senior vice-president, (interactive), Star India
“The VCR gave back to consumers the concept of time; the mobile will give them back the concept of space. You can consume entertainment when you want and where you want it.”
Raj Singh, director, Activemedia Technology
“Only 60 million people know English. Hindi is where the eyeballs are”
Hemant Sachdev, director (marketing and communications), Bharti Tele-Ventures
“The Indian consumer is willing to pay a premium for VAS”
Other notable facts:
India has one of the lowest spectrum allocation per GSM operator in the world, about 6 Mhz against, over 25 in the UK or over 20 in China.
Just 15-20% of the phones in India have colour screens and/or cameras.
The effective rate per minute has moved from Rs 1.50 to Re 0.95, while costs per minute have been chopped from Rs 1.25 to Re 0.87 on its way to becoming Rs 0.8.
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
US market ringtones, Games and messaging stats
Every month in the U.S., only 10% of mobile subscribers download a ring tone to their phones, and less than 4% download games. Text messaging is holding steady at about 33%.
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