ABI Research has released data indicating that revenue from mobile video services is set to top $2 billion by 2013, driven in large part by increased availability of 4G data services and video-centric smartphones and tablets.
ABI predicts video telephony, video messaging and video-on-demand will account for a majority of the revenue earned from mobile video, but that it could get interesting as MNOs compete for earnings as consumers’ appetite for mobile video consumption continues to grow.
In addition to the popularity and adoption of OTT services that provide intense competition for MNO-branded mobile video services, other limiting factors to the industry’s overall growth include an insufficient range and variety of video-capable mobile devices, as well as business models that are “immature and imperfectly matched to consumers’ preferences,” cited the report.
“Video services revenue will only amount to about $121 million this year,” says senior analyst Mark Beccue. “But the growth curve is very steep indeed, and will only continue to accelerate through the end of our forecast period in 2015.”
What should be interesting to watch is how MNOs adapt to the growing insurgence of mobile video, and whether carriers will come out the big winners, or whether third-party providers and applications will emerge notorious. “MNOs mustn’t settle for the role of undifferentiated mobile ISPs that manage ‘dumb pipes’,” Beccue advises. “They should provide a variety of mobile video services and leverage strategic ecosystems until they upgrade their networks to provide quality video services. Partnering with device OEMs and software solution providers will help to optimize mobile devices. This will contribute to an already significant investment, but the rewards will be great.”
