GROWTH IN THE NUMBER OF MOBILE TV USERS IN THE ASIA PACIFIC REGION - Assodigitale - Associazione Italiana Operatori Industria e Media Digitali

There should be about 5 million Mobile TV viewers in the region by the end of 2006. To these figures must be added those users who instead consume or will consume video services on 3G mobile telephone networks.

Currently, mobile TV services in the Asia Pacific region have been launched in South Korea (in May 2005 and December 2005) and in Japan (in October 2004 and April 2006).

Mobile TV phone services will be available in Vietnam by the end of 2006 and, starting early in 2007, in India. Mobile TV service trials are also currently being conducted in other countries in the region, including China, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Australia and Singapore. In the medium-long term, growth in the mobile TV market in the Asia Pacific region is closely tied to the development of Mobile TV services in China.

According to the e-Media Institute study, in 2010 there could be nearly 73 million Mobile TV users in the Asia Pacific region. However, should the Chinese market develop more rapidly, the dimensions of the Mobile TV market could even be greater in the medium-long term.