News
Issue #2003 - 31 (December 2003)
(Updated Dec. 16, 2003)

MARKET OUTLOOK & TRENDS

Mobile Gambling and Adult Content to generate $6.5bn by 2006 under Favorable Regulatory Environment

Source: Juniper Research
Two new studies from Juniper Research of UK conclude that "Gambling and Adult" based content have the potential to generate revenues in excess of $6.5bn by 2006, but only if the right operating conditions are set by the industry, its regulators and partners:

Safety, security and child protection must be the No.1 priority – getting these issues right will lay the foundations for future growth.

Trustworthy and reliable payment systems must be in place, providing two-way commercial transactions (micro and macro payments for services, and the return of gambling winnings).

Unsolicited content, ‘Spam’ – the curse of the internet, must not be allowed to invade the mobile world to the same extent. Self regulation must feature high on the agenda, or the inevitable lobbying and regulation will no doubt be enforced .

Operator & service provider brand protection, and public perception, will need to be managed very carefully, distancing content provider and operator.

Paul Skeldon, Senior Analyst at Juniper Research, and mobile entertainment specialist comments: “A high demand from mobile users for adult content, and simple lottery type gambling services, is almost without doubt. The big issue now facing the sector is regulation, and its implementation across the world. Our assessment is that the services that are given a green-light will generate good revenues (in certain regions), but these will be limited. Regulated lotteries and betting services will be the big winners”. 

The Juniper study found that adult content will generate around $790m in revenues by 2006, with over half of this derived from video content. Despite large amounts of adult-type content being exchanged by peers (via text and camera phones etc), we believe that content generating revenue will remain relatively low.

The introduction of peer to peer betting at sports events, and the like, will be the one to watch, as will the adoption of lottery and TV linked competitions to the mobile.

For more information: http://ww.juniperresearch.com

MobileInfo Comments and Advisory: Juniper Research is probably right that if government did give mobile operators and adult entertainment providers a liberal regulatory environment environment, they would be able to generate that kind of revenue. The real issue is whether the network providers should allow themselves to be used for this type of content. Don't we have enough channels of distribution for adult entertainment and should we open this one else because we are not succeeding in meeting ARPU expectations of the industry? Do we sound like moral standard bearers of wireless consumers? The industry has to have a social conscience and ignore what  market research of Juniper Research suggests.

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