MARKET researcher In-Stat has identified ten trends that it says over the next five years will have significant impact on the evolution of mobile handsets in the European market. One of the key trends is that demand for data access and the availability of Fixed Mobile Convergence will push the development of dual-mode GSM/Wi-Fi handsets.

Despite significant technological and regulatory challenges that may arise, the worldwide annual consumer spending on mobile broadcast TV services is expected to exceed $6.6 billion by 2012, according to a new report from Juniper Research.

THE market for long-form mobile/portable video content (video content of greater than 30 minutes) is currently in an experimental phase, and will remain at this stage for at least two years, according to a report from In-Stat.

The market opportunity lies in identifying the transition from poor quality streamed mobile TV services to QVGA quality broadcast mobile TV, according to Juniper Research.

A NEW report, ‘New Mobile Services - Europe 2006', from Portio Research (the result of a survey of European mobile phone users in early 2006), gives a resounding thumbs up for mobile TV.

Juniper Research sees 2006 as marking the official beginning of the switchover from streamed to
broadcast mobile TV, yet hurdles must be overcome.

It is said that a week is a long time in politics - it's the same in broadcasting. That makes a year an eternity which is what it must feel like for BT Movio who at the end of July announced that it had discontinued its Movio wholesale provided DAB-based mobile TV service, thus leaving provider Virgin Mobile high and dry.

The European Commission's recommendation on 18 July that the DVB-H mobile TV standard be regarded as the de facto standard for mobile TV has already split the mobile TV industry...

IN A BROAD look at the mobile TV industry, high-tech market research firm In-Stat believes that even though mobile video services are a hot topic with great potential, the market is very complicated, and will take quite a few more years to completely sort itself out.

RESULTS from a recent consumer mobility survey by Canalsys have revealed that European consumers may be very receptive to emerging mobile phone design trends, such as the use of touch screens.