MUMBAI: Advances in mobile digital TV technology and the impact this growing industry will have on broadcasters, content providers and consumers.
These subjects were dwelt upon by Texas Instruments VP and manager worldwide strategic marketing Doug Rasor.
He delivered the closing keynote during the Society of Broadcast Engineers' annual conference a few days ago in the US. He said, "Mobile TV combines the two most popular consumer products of our time, the mobile phone and television, providing broadcasters, networks and content providers access to an untapped market of 1.6 billion cell phone subscribers for their programming."
However, he noted that to make the mobile TV industry a realistically affordable service for consumers, an ecosystem based on open standards is key. "Open standards such as DVB-H enable all players of the mobile TV market to address the market on a more even playing field, from handset manufacturers to broadcasters to service providers. This fosters stronger competition, lowers consumer prices and enables faster service deployment of compelling content and services to consumers."
In preparation for service rollouts that are expected to begin next year the DVB-H ecosystem is actively participating in consumer trials worldwide that are proving out business models, consumer preferences and opportunities
for additional revenues. The trials have shown strong consumer interest and willingness to pay between $10 and $15 monthly for services. "With mobile TV services, consumers will be able watch live TV programming on their cell phone to 'snack' on 10-15 minutes of news, sporting events, weather and other content throughout the day which promises to create a new revenue stream for broadcasters and advertisers," Rasor said.
Closing his remarks, Rasor reminded the audience that in order to make the mobile TV market successful, content is also a key consideration. "Just like TV programming, consumers want interesting and compelling content to watch. If the right mix of entertainment, news, sports and pop-culture programming isn't available for cell phones, mobile TV will not meet its full potential to reach billions of cell phone users worldwide over the next five to ten years."
