More and more leading TV and film studios are making
their shows available on these new platforms.
Children's TV shows will be the latest to join the host of
comedy, lifestyle, music and other programmes already out in the mobile space.
Entertainment legend Disney announced its first pan-European
deal here this week to provide some of its most popular Disney Channel shows to
Orange customers from Britain through Portugal to Poland and Slovakia.
"It's how today's kids are growing up to watch TV -- at a time
and in a place they choose and it's important that content providers are able to
deliver that," Disney said in a press release.
Disney is one of the first to target the younger age group, but
cellphone operators like SFR in France is also getting savvy about tapping into
the technology-loving younger market.
SFR senior executive, Hala Baviere, told a packed conference
here that her network is pulling in younger customers through its great choice
of music and by making available their favourite programmes at times when they
don't have school or college.
The cost of watching TV on a mobile is also coming down. SFR
users in France can watch unlimited TV content over the weekend for just 10
euros a month and is even offering access to three channels for free to try and
attract new subscribers.
An "all you can eat" subscription similar to that offered by
cable TV channels seems to be the one people like best, Hale said.
User generated content, including blogging, are the other new
things that operators expect will drive the uptake of TV on the phone.
Orange's Ahuja said blogging has been a huge success for Orange
since they made it available. "In France last month we had 110,000 bloggers," he
noted.
"A simple, compelling service allows you to upload a photo to
your phone and hundreds of thousands of Orange customers can vote on your
photo," he said.
As TV gains pace on small hand-held devices, people are starting
to produce ever more imaginative content.
