Open standards are critical to the successful deployment of Mobile TV, which “combines the two most popular consumer products of our time, mobile phone and television,” said Doug Rasor, vice president and manager of Worldwide Strategic Marketing for Texas Instruments during an Oct. 20 industry gathering.
During his closing keynote at the Society of Broadcast Engineers annual conference, Rasor said for broadcasters, networks and content providers to tap into the 1.6 billion cell phone subscribers as market for their content, “realistically affordable services for consumers” will require “an ecosystem based on open standards.”
Rasor pointed to DVB-H as an example of an open standard that lets all mobile TV players address the market on a “more even playing field.”
Currently, DVB-H trials are being conducted worldwide to prove business models, determine consumer preferences and identify opportunities for additional revenue, he said. These trials have identified strong consumer interest in mobile TV and “willingness to pay between $10 and $15 monthly for services,” he said. Rasor identified news, sports and weather as programming that consumers are willing to watch on their phones in 10 to 15 minute segments. This “promises to create a new revenue stream for broadcasters and advertisers," he said.
To make mobile TV successful will require the “right mix” of programming, he said. Without it, the emerging technology “will not meet its full potential to reach billions of cell phone users worldwide over the next five to 10 years."
To view Rasor’s presentation, visit www.ti.com/rasor_sbe.