Room for Improvement

As market predictions for Mobile TV spiral ever upwards, Avichai Levy, Senior VP of mobile multimedia and advertising comany Mobixell shares his views on what needs to happen if Mobile TV is to fulfil its lofty expectations

The dramatic rise to fame of You Tube and the media frenzy caused by the launch of the iPhone have given rise to the rebirth of Mobile TV and video with the potential for genuine mass market appeal.  It has also given food for thought to many mobile operators keen to have their share of the Mobile TV pie, but anxious to avoid a case of indigestion.
Industry analysts seem to agree that the Mobile TV market is about to take-off. ABI Research predicts mobile video will reach 167 million customers in Europe and gross $10 billion (5.5 billion) in revenues by 2012. A recent survey# carried out among US consumers revealed that just under 50% of respondents were interested in receiving Mobile TV and - bearing in mind that there are more mobile phones in use worldwide (2.8 billion) than all the TV sets, computers and cinema screens combined - a 50% interest in Mobile TV represents a massive potential market. Little wonder then that mobile operators are eyeing the market enthusiastically and wondering whether the time is indeed right to make a serious investment in this new, emerging market. So what is the secret to unlocking the mass market appeal of mobile video?

Enjoyable experience
Mobile TV is a form of entertainment, and in order for the user to become hooked, the user experience must be an enjoyable one. Traditionally, the user experience has been the Achilles heel of mobile content delivery. Whereas some level of quality will be compromised in return for the convenience of making a mobile phone call or even, to some degree, for being able to catch up on the days news events wherever you are in the world, users will be less tolerant of viewing mobile video footage such as the cat playing the piano video or the latest Lost trailer, if the experience is not enjoyable.  So quality and usability will be key to hooking the users into the service. 
Another key factor influencing the success of Mobile TV will be its ability to cater for a wide variety of different tastes, not just reproducing the main TV channels like Sky, CNN or the BBC, but also embracing content from other major content producers like the movie companies. Like the Internet, where the long tail pattern has unleashed a new demand for niche content, the mobile phone also has the potential to deliver a variety of content to cater for a multitude of different tastes. If Mobile TV is to build up a regular and returning consumer user base, it will need to offer a variety of different programming, including premium content; specialised content, catering for specific lifestyle or interests like travel or sports; plus the rich world of User-generated Content such as that found on sites like You Tube. Admittedly, some of the video content may need to be tailored specifically to the mobile medium, with shorter clips rather than feature-length films. I believe, however, that the trends in mobile consumption will increasingly emulate that of video consumption via the TV and the Internet, especially once the user experience and price challenges have been addressed.

The second wave of mobile video
Why is it that Mobile TV is coming of age now?  There have been a variety of trials around Europe, but there is a real sentiment today that the tide is turning towards a genuine mass market opportunity. Aside from the trailblazing of the likes of Apples iPhone and You Tube, there are a number of other factors contributing to these favourable market conditions. These include the existence of a critical mass of handsets with video capability. Add to this the fact that high speed network coverage has also expanded significantly, with 3G coverage widely available and the fledgling DVB-H network also gaining ground, spurred on by the European Commissions recent decision to endorse it as the de facto standard across the EU. The other key ingredient is the removal of the pricing barriers that have hampered the growth of Mobile TV. The move towards flat rate price packages which remove the fear of an unexpected and unwelcome bill arriving on the doormat, combined with the prospect of ad-funded content, mean that the scene is set for a major shift in fortunes for mobile video. 

Technology barriers
Yet while market conditions seem ripe for a change of fortunes, technology barriers still remain. As discussed, the ultimate mobile video solution needs to be able to accommodate a range of different types of content premium, niche and user- generated. It also needs to be able to amalgamate content from different sources, including cable, satellite and IPTV, as well as drawing on the content already available from the web and mobile. Another challenge is the need to support different networks, including 3G, DVB-H networks as well as WiMax and even LTE in the future, involving different delivery types: Multicast, which is mainly used for broadcast; and Unicast, which is best for one-to-one communications. 
Another feature which is likely to entice users based on their experience in traditional TV is the need for a personal video recorder (PVR) service to offer a personalised storage search and play mechanism. Other likely user enhancements include the need for fast channel changing and an Electronic Program Guide, enabling users to browse through and select various channels. Other useful additions include StartOver and other video on demand (VOD) type mechanisms, as well as SlingBox, to enable cable/IPTV subscribers to enjoy PVR services on their mobile.

User experience
For Swisscom, a key concern when broadcasting this summers Euro 2008 football tournament to their mobile subscribers was being able to take five live TV channels, and allow users to switch between matches either live or recorded in a VOD service format on any handset. The operator needed to be confident that its system could handle the massive surge in demand during the matches and ensure that the user experience was optimal at all times, even when a mobile users network signal was cut off as they moved between cells and networks. Mobixells video engine was used to provide Bit Rate Adaptation, a technique that serves to flatten out changes in network conditions and maintain a consistent, high quality user service. 
In my view, a key driver for the commercial success of Mobile TV for operators will be the advent of ad-sponsored content. Being able to insert not only banner ads but more importantly, MMS and video ads into video content, offers operators a viable revenue stream, and has vast potential for advertisers to reach a highly personalised, targeted audience, and yet delivering this is far from straight forward, although that is perhaps the subject for another article

Room for improvement
My personal belief is that there is considerable room for improvement in Mobile TV as it stands today. After all, there are only a few channels, with limited appeal. And yet the opportunity is there for the taking if the industry is able to deliver the rich variety of content that users have become accustomed to enjoying on the web and TV.  A number of technical hurdles have yet to be overcome to accommodate different content formats, delivered over different types of networks. Not to mention the need to tackle the bandwidth issues, the range of different devices, and the need for enforcement of strict policies, for example, to protect minors from accessing inappropriate adult content,
While all this may sound like a huge challenge, the reality is that much of the technology to achieve this already exists, and we are beginning to see real life examples, like Swisscoms mobile coverage of Euro 2008, which will blaze a trail for others to follow. Mobile video offers huge promise for the future and its one that mobile operators would do well to address sooner rather than later, if they dont want to initiative to be snatched by their satellite or cable competitors.