At OMMA last week, a discussion at the Mobilizing the Video Ad Model panel centered around monetizing TV on mobile phones. But the first question we must ask is: Does anyone even use it?
It’s true, you hardly ever see anyone watching video on cell phones. Right now, only 4 in 20 handsets can even support it. But while it is nascent, everyone has a cell. Mobile video has the highest growth rate across all sectors and soon everyone’s phone will support video. According to a new report from Jupiter Research, the number of mobile users with broadcast TV service worldwide will grow tenfold–to nearly 120 million–by 2012.
While all the major carriers have their on-deck video content, the future is off deck. The carrier model is a passive one, which will not succeed in the long term. According to a panelist, it works for people who don’t want to think, who just want entertainment served to them. But the core, coveted demographic—young males—are the future of mobile video and they are all about choice and are highly selective.
Already, content creators and providers are beginning to provide off-deck content. This year, CBS announced an off-deck
strategy for its mobile content with video-enabled WAP sites for the news and entertainment shows. Versaly Entertainment, a mobile video network aimed at these core users young men, is about to go off the free Fast Lane channel of Sprint’s deck. After that same demo is RipeTV and OctaneTV also have an off-deck strategy. We’re also seeing mobile networks like MyWaves, MyCorner, and CellFish emerge as players in the market.
Right now, it’s the “use case,” as one panel speaker said. The consumer is mobile, and advertisers want adoption around the content before they dive in. But content is being monetized with mobile ads, which will soon power all our media consumption. Branded content, overlays, click to call, click to text, click to video… these models will all bring us our off-deck content. And consumers don’t mind. Study after study show that younger consumers are willing to accept ads if it means they get a service, content, or added value for free.
In the U.S., we are in the midst of a mobile revolution. The broadband auction has more and more companies and consumers voicing complaints, and carriers are running out of excuses. Youth in Asia and Europe are avid users of mobile video already. Here, the “use case” with the current model is a case in point–no one uses it. Video will take off when it goes off deck and ads will pave the way.
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