From the SPB TV press release:
To make the participation easier for the mobile users from different countries, the survey was conducted in several languages: English, French, German, Russian, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic and Chinese.
“We discovered that, with the growing amount of offers, mobile TV users become really demanding; instead of an amusing app they expect a high-quality service, providing stable playback and exciting TV content. But in response consumers can grant a real loyalty confirmed with a long-term subscription and a great deal of time spent watching mobile TV,” says Kirill Philippov, CEO of MobiWorld Media.
Some snippets from the survey results:
What is the operating system of your current mobile device?
SPB TV Survey uncovered that mobile TV subscribers use the service on absolutely all existing mobile operating systems including even feature phones. So it’s crucial for the mobile TV provider to cover all platforms, instead of focusing on major ones, like iOS and Android. The Symbian OS still leaves the competitors far behind (46% of total amount); and the usage of Windows Phone 7 platform is growing. Besides 5% of respondents use feature phones and also want to have an access to the mobile TV service.
How long do you usually watch Mobile TV uninterruptedly?
The average duration of watching TV on mobile devices became perhaps the most surprising result. There is a common opinion that mobile TV is not as convenient to watch as in-home TV on TV-set or even desktop, and people simply fill in the time gaps, playing mobile TV for several minutes. This hypothesis was disproved by SPB TV Survey respondents, 36% of which assert they usually watch TV on their mobile devices over 30 minutes uninterruptedly. 23% say they normally play it for 20 to 30 minutes, and 22% have chosen the “10-20 minutes” option. Just 6% of the participants affirm that they usually spend no more than 5 minutes watching it.
30 minutes at a time sounds a lot to me, though it's possible that people do what I do, i.e. prop the phone up on the kitchen counter and watch it while doing the dishes or cooking!
And the critical question, of course....
How much do you pay for the Mobile TV per month (including subscription and internet traffic)?
For several years mobile users have been watching mobile TV for free, 65% of respondents answered they pay nothing for the mobile TV they watch, including even internet traffic consumed. And still the time to monetize the service has come, as it is gaining popularity and the sphere is becoming highly compatible. According to the survey, wide choice of channels, especially local or translated ones, appears to be a crucial parameter for the subscriber. 51% of the respondents stated that they would subscribe to premium content of their interest if made available through mobile TV. So the paid subscription seems to be a promising way of monetization.28% of respondents are ready to pay $1-5 for the mobile TV service per month (all expenses included). This option was popular in such countries, as Russia (33%), France (27%), Germany (38%), China (40%) and Brazil (31%). In some countries people find it fair to pay $5-10 for watching TV channels of their choice on their mobile devices, this answer was given by the participants from the USA (29%), Argentina (27%) and Spain (40%). Still in several regions most of consumers don’t want to spend on the service more than $1 per month, among them India (41%), Saudi Arabia (36%) and Turkey (67%).
Comments welcome. You can read more at the full article.
Personally, I find time-shifted content (e.g. BBC iPlayer, TV Catchup) more convenient and enjoyable. Same for you? Is streamed live TV on a phone a novelty still? Or a useful real-time resource?