Mobile Video

With the growing market of video capable mobile phones and media centers in cars extending functionality to video playing and mobileTV, mobile video production is providing owners of mobile devices with a broad range of media to choose from.

YouTube has extended its video catalog to mobile videos, and other sites exist as pure mobile video directories. So too are mobile production services growing. Examples include:

• TinyTube - mobile video directory which provides search and video proxy services for mobile devices. It enables search and video playback from several major video sharing services by optimizing web pages for smaller displays and reformatting video clips.
• O2 Mobile Video - O2 Active Service provides videos on latest sports and news highlights.
• AllMobileVideo - a full suite of production resources - mobile production, editorial, transmission, sound stage management, post-production, equipment sales and rentals, and satellite transmission.
• Jamster - purely entertainment videos

But just how many people bother viewing video on such a small screen - according to a study "The Home Technology Monitor" conducted by KnowledgeNetworks, "mobile video available through cell phone subscriptions and other mobile devices such as the iPod have fewer active users than the installed base". In fact only 50% of subscribers actually use the service.

Perhaps the best uses for mobile video are quick clips to share with friends and posting on mobile video sharing sites, and as a means to access your webcam.

Uses For Mobile Video

Mobile Video allows users to:

1. Publish your camera feed publicly or privately
2. Communicate via VideoCam with family and friends
3. Use it as a Nanny Cam
4. Monitor your house while away
5. Network with friends

Mobile Phone Video Capability

Phones that support RTSP protocol can also serve video with virtually no delay. Those that don't can generally view mobile videos using TCPMP playback software.

To use your mobile to view your webcam you can download a free Logitech Mobile Video Desktop application.

It seems that laptops are the preferred platform for mobile video watching. And those who access video on their cell phones often watch it at home.

Mobile Video Technology

Basically, you need a network capable of managing broadband capacity, a video capable phone, a streaming application, a video player and content formatted in the correct media codec. For example:

• Qualcomm MediaFLO
• Nokia’s N77 mobile TV phone - with DVB-H
• Oplayo - a niche application being used by some content companies to produce and stream media.
• WindowsMedia or RealOnePlayer
• Windows Media Player 9 codecs - for Windows Media content on Symbian and Java based mobile phones

But all technology and media companies are preparing. Adobe is including video in its upcoming mobile software release, which could help drive a web-like video experience on cell phones.

Mobile Video Future

ABI Research forecasts, demand for mobile video will explode by 2011, anticipating more than half a billion customers will subscribe to video services on their mobile phones. This will transform the 2005 subscription revenue stream of $50 million into several hundred billion dollars by 2011.

The market drivers behind this growth are: key industry players, enabling technologies, and business models.

The main cited barriers to uptake of mobile media services are:

• hard to watch content on small screens
• fast-draining battery life
• networks that are often clogged.

M:Metrics says that 84% of survey responders said they were ‘very unlikely’ to pay a subscription fee for mobile video in the coming year.

The questions that need to be answered are:

1. What technologies underlie mobile video?
2. How many customers will subscribe to mobile video services?
3. How will advertising revenue contribute to the global mobile video value proposition?
4. Are mobile digital video broadcast services a threat or an opportunity for cellular operators?
5. What regions will offer mobile video services first, and what will be the revenue opportunities in each one?
6. What opportunities for new business models exist in the mobile video ecosystem?
7. What are the technology needs of mobile video operators?

The reality is, mobile video is just not yet good enough to justify data charges, subscription charges and premium content charges. But keep watch on major mobile media industry players - and expect more to happen as 3G mobile networks are fully deployed.

Next: Global Cellphones

Back To Top

Mobile Index | GSM | EDGE | CDMA | WCDMA | SIMs | Mobile OS | Mobile Apps | Mobile Video | Global Cellphone | Mobile Desktop | Device Market Share | Motorola Roadmap | Cingular Roadmap | Sprint Roadmap | Verizon Wireless Roadmap