Europe : Video will be a priority for mobile operators in 2004, says Ovum, the analyst and consulting company, and advises players to launch video services in 2004, and gain valuable experience quickly.

Inset is Dario Betti, Senior Analyst with Ovum quoted below.

Plenty of action around mobile video can be expected in 2004. "Mobile video is set to become a `fourth screen'," says Dario Betti, Senior Analyst with Ovum. "After television, cinema and the PC a new platform is taking shape."

There is still plenty of uncertainty on how to shape this new medium. Mobile networks need to find an alternative role for mobile video, a copy of an existing service will be of little interest.

Video is set to become an important element of data services, but one about which operators know remarkably little right now. Operator focus is still confused: most of the efforts have being on tweaking technologies to make it work and not in creating services.

Betti believes that "operators should start with a combination of communication and content services."

The cost of launching video is not prohibitive; operators should start with applications supported by their existing network, and then add advanced video services once migration to 3G networks starts. Capital expenditure for video services is moderate, partly due to previous investments in data services. Mobile video can generate cash: despite its relatively small contribution in terms of revenues, video has a good chance to self fund its deployment and start to generate some profits over the next five years. Ovum expects a return on investment in 3-4 years from launch.

The first application to launch is video messaging: it is a straight evolution of picture messaging, anticipated to generate $650 million world-wide in revenues.

Video alerts are also important. The mobile handset has already proved itself a good platform for personalised delivery of last minute information and SMS-based content, video should simply increase the range of services available. The launch of video telephony is pegged to 3G networks. More of those should be seen by the end of 2004. Betti recommends that only after 2004 should operators launch other more `exotic' applications: such as push to show, see what I see, and video personalisation: "learn to walk before you run".