Is mobile TV gaining momentum or isn't it? In recent weeks, both Nokia (NYSE: NOK) and Qualcomm have said the service isn't getting the take up it had expected, with the Finnish handset maker dramatically declaring it was "a bit in a turmoil." According to an IHT feature on the subject, however, it's got respectable traction in Europe and Asia. In Switzerland, 40,000 people watch a 100-second news broadcast on their mobiles each day through Swisscom's service costing 13 Swiss francs ($12.50) a month. In Italy, some 1 million people subscribe to mobile TV services from its three operators, paying up to 19 euros ($30) a month. Research firm In-Stat says Japan and South Korea lead in uptake. They, however, measure uptake according to how many devices come with TV receivers—20 million in Japan, and 8.2 million in South Korea. By comparison, In-Stat estimates that US carrier Verizon (NYSE: VZ), which has offered mobile TV services via Qualcomm's MediaFlo for a year now, has fewer than 100,000 paying viewers.
European uptake could be higher as well, but is apparently being hindered by the lack of available broadcast spectrum. While the European Commission has endorsed the DVB-H standard for mobile video, the lack of spectrum is driving some European operators to turn to a different standard called DVB-T, with the T standing for terrestrial. The technology, however, lets users bypass network control of mobile TV, meaning they don't pay a penny for it. Some operators, however, are considering the trade-off—free terrestrial TV services for a bigger audience. In Germany, T-Mobile failed to secure a DVB-H license and now plans instead on selling DVB-T mobile phone, while Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) is also thinking of selling DVB-T devices. The question is of course, whether "free" can drive viewership and how revenues will be wrung from such services.
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