 | Issue: | Asia-Pacific III 2009 |
| Article no.: | 16 | |
| Topic: | Mobile entertainment – a global perspective | |
| Author: | Rohith Bhat | |
| Title: | Managing Director & CEO | |
| Organisation: | Robosoft Technologies | |
| PDF size: | 230KB |
About author
Rohith Bhat is a Founder, and the Managing Director and CEO of Robosoft Technologies, a software company that develops products for the Mac OS, Windows, iPhone, Android and Web platforms. Mr Bhat has over 15 years of experience in the IT industry; he began his career as a software engineer for Recosoft Corporation in Osaka, Japan and later held the same position in Larsen & Toubro, Mumbai. He was named the ‘Outstanding Young Entrepreneur of the Year’ at the Mangalore Conclave 2007 for building a dynamic and growing business in a non-IT zone. Rohith Bhat holds a Bachelors degree in Computer Science from Mangalore University.
Article abstract
The mobile phone plays an increasingly large role in our lives. We are accustomed to anywhere, anytime voice and messaging. Business users have long used mobile phones in the field to keep in touch with their offices, to access company systems and check their email. Today, though, one of the biggest growth areas is mobile entertainment. Music is the best selling form of mobile entertainment and gaming is close behind. Mobile TV is growing, but still has a way to go.
Full Article
The mobile phone has touched our lives. There are no two ways about it. From rich business people to ordinary workers, mobile phones have become vital to everyone’s business. And it doesn’t end here. What was unimaginable a couple of years ago has turned in to reality and mobile entertainment is becoming as indispensable as mobile communication. People no longer want to be glued to their televisions or computer screens for entertainment; they want to be entertained while they’re travelling, waiting in line or boarding an airplane and can’t imagine being bored even for a minute. Internet has met its match as online entertainment is moving to a smaller and more convenient platform. While a phenomenon as vast as mobile entertainment is difficult to define in a few words, it can be seen as a convergence of two major industries, telecommunications and entertainment, and mainly consists of mobile music, games and TV. Music is the biggest chunk of the mobile entertainment pie and gaming is close behind. Mobile entertainment and the world Mobile entertainment has come a long way – from mono-ring tones in the late nineties to a driver of handset sales. People all over the world now use mobile phones for social networking, games, to send photographs and even to book tickets. Because of the runaway success of Apple’s App Store, major competitors have sprung up to compete in the mobile entertainment market with similar online applications stores – they provide a single platform to reach out to customers all over the world. India’s scenario India has been touted as the fastest growing telecom market in the world with more than 400 million mobile subscribers as of early 2009. Growing at a phenomenal rate of 15 million new connections per month, the number is set to hit 700 million by the end of 2010. Despite the rapid growth rate of subscriptions in India, mobile entertainment has not really taken off as it has in the west. The situation is bound to change with the upcoming launch of 3G, as of now though, the bulk of the revenues still comes from voice services with mobile entertainment accounting for only ten per cent of the total revenue. It should be noted that despite being the fastest growing telecom market, the average revenue per user (ARPU) in India is the lowest in the world. This could be attributed to the operator-driven strategy in India as compared to the content-driven strategy adopted by Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android in western markets. According to a latest research report by mobile analyst mobileSQUARED, India will be a leading mobile content market by 2013. Rise of smart phones Smart phones, though popular, still comprise of less than 20 per cent of the handsets in most developed markets. Being most suitable for mobile entertainment because of their wide screens and improved GPRS connectivity, they have caught the attention of mobile phone operators who are eyeing it as a means of increasing their revenue. This in turn is leading them to push sales of these high-end phones more than any other category. As per AdMob’s mobile metrics report, the iPhone, Android and Palm Pre operating systems for the smart phones have been experiencing a considerable increase in their market share in the past six months over legacy platforms and are being looked at as the flag-bearers of mobile entertainment. Growth of mobile gaming Game developers are banking on the growth of mobile gaming. In fact, many were lured into quitting their jobs to cash in on the recent App Store gold rush. With an array of mobile gaming platforms vying for the attention of the consumer, and technology changing at a dizzying pace, mobile gaming has come a long way since ‘snake game’ was included as a standard on Nokia phones. It’s safe to say that mobile phones have turned into the ultimate gaming platform in developing markets with the introduction of new and improved handsets. Opportunities Mobile entertainment can act as a perfect customer-bonding tool, which is essential for long-term success in any industry. The more you entertain the customers, the less they are likely to mind your advertising in between entertainment content. Keeping this in mind, gaining customer engagement by coming out with affordable applications would be a primary key to success. In terms of business, tremendous potential exists for casual gaming and TV with increasing 3G penetration around the world. To succeed, however, deployment of world-class entertainment content through any platform is essential. Challenges The mobile entertainment business has been hit hard by the recession. The industry, which was expected to grow by US$26 billion in the next five years, is now estimated to cross just US$13 billion. With the economy spiralling downwards, customers are reducing the use of discretionary services such as mobile entertainment, if not giving them up completely. It’s a huge challenge to keep them coming back for more. With rising competition and plunging sales figures, companies are looking for new ways of enticing potential customers into purchasing their products. In such a scenario, providing customers with variety is vital for success in this industry. Another obvious challenge in providing mobile entertainment comes from the constraints posed by the size of the mobile handsets. The content designed must use the limited space in the best possible manner. Outlook Mobile phones are no longer the last alternative for entertainment in the absence of other media. With mobile entertainment offering a variety of good options, people are now looking at it as a platform of choice. As the market continues to evolve with new technologies coming in, developers now have a good number of channels to reach users and it’s pretty much left to them to make the best use of it. The future of mobile entertainment looks bright as content providers keep coming out with an assortment of options to captivate potential customers and the sales of entertainment-capable handsets is picking up. Without a doubt, mobile entertainment is here to stay.
