Frost: Free DVB-H Mobile Broadcast TV Offered in Europe
July 2, 2008 // Published as a news service by IHS
European consumers have access to free mobile TV for the first time.
According to Frost & Sullivan, 3 Italia is the first to offer free mobile broadcast TV, based on digital video broadcast-handheld (DVB-H). The user will be able to watch TV channels between 8 a.m. and midnight at no extra cost.
Analysts said this will be possible through the support of dynamic advertising that interacts with users. This new service will be branded "La3" and it is unique in Europe. Similar offerings exist only in Japan and South Korea.
According to Frost & Sullivan research analyst Saverio Romeo, 3 Italia is demonstrating once more how it can be innovative and farsighted when it comes to the mobile content market.
"In May 2006, 3 Italia launched the first commercially viable DVB-H mobile TV solution. This really caught a skeptical market by surprise. Within three months, 3 Italia had more than 100,000 mobile TV subscribers.
"And whilst the other operators were busy catching up with such a success, in August 2007, 3 Italia had more than 700,000 subscribers to its service, becoming the largest mobile TV provider in Europe."
In addition to the distribution of content, analysts said the Italian mobile provider also developed an in-house TV production facility and started to sell its own content.
Romeo said 3 Italia made history by demonstrating that mobile TV could be a successful business model if developed with the right approach. Mobile TV requires a substantial capital investment, a clear plan on the availability of radio spectrum and a clear and convenient pricing strategy for the end customer.
European mobile operators have undertaken numerous trials in the past few years. Analysts said the recent successes and positive support from within the European Commission (EC) toward mobile TV have been responsible for a renewed interest in the provision of this service.
Three new commercial services were launched in the Netherlands, Austria and Switzerland in May 2008, and French authorities just awarded network licenses for this service, Romeo said.
It seems that mobile TV is going through a revitalization across Europe. But what will the recent free mobile TV launch by 3 Italia mean for the market? "The launch will surely spur the other Italian operators into action and maybe push them to compete head-to-head with 3 [Italia] on a free mobile TV platform," Romeo said. "The same could happen to other countries across Europe, too."
Source: Frost & Sullivan.