Handset Concerns May Block Boom in China's Mobile TV Market

Mobile TV is a hot topic for both telecom carriers and broadcasting operators. For mobile carriers, it represents an opportunity to reduce churn rates and raise ever-dropping ARPUs; for broadcast operators, it represents an opportunity to extend the market from TV set to handset. At this point, two mobile operators, China Mobile and China Unicom, have launched Mobile TV services based on their GPRS or CDMA networks, and are cooperating with companies who have obtained Mobile TV licenses from the State Administration of Radio, Film and TV (SARFT).

In-Stat surveyed 725 potential consumers via the Internet to answer the following questions:

1. Why do Chinese consumers not watch TV on handsets?
2. What is the potential for consumer acceptance of Mobile TV services?
3. What kinds of Mobile TV content do consumers prefer?
4. What patterns of usage will consumers employ, and how long will they typically watch Mobile TV?
5. How much are consumers willing to pay for Mobile TV service?
6. How much are consumers willing to pay for Mobile TV-enabled handsets?

In addition, the report provides an analysis of the factors that impact respondent attitudes to and requirements of Mobile TV.

Executive Summary

Introduction

Survey Demographics

Age of Respondents

Respondents’ Personal Income

Respondents’ Monthly Cost of Mobile Services

Respondents’ Monthly Cost of Mobile VASs

Respondents’ Service Providers

Respondents’ Business Trip Frequency

Respondents’ Attitudes Toward New Technology

Survey Results

Respondents’ Reasons for Not Watching Mobile TV

Respondents’ Attitudes Toward Mobile TV

Respondents’ Attitudes Toward Mobile TV by Age

Respondents’ Attitudes Toward Mobile TV by Service Provider

Technology Adoption and Attitudes Toward Mobile TV

Respondents’ Attitudes Toward Mobile TV by Mobile Service Spending

Business Trip Frequency and Acceptance of Mobile TV

Where Mobile TV is Viewed

Preferred Length of Time Watching Mobile TV

Preferred Mobile TV Content

KSF (Key Success Factor) for Watching Mobile TV

Preferred Monthly Spending on Mobile TV

Plans to Buy Mobile TV-Enabled Handsets

Preferred Price of Mobile TV-Enabled Handsets

Methodology

Related In-Stat Reports

List of Tables

Table 1. Respondents’ Cities

List of Figures

Figure 1. Age of Respondents

Figure 2. Respondents’ Personal Income (US$)

Figure 3. Respondents’ Monthly Cost of Mobile Services (US$)

Figure 4. Respondents’ Monthly Cost of Mobile VASs (US$)

Figure 5. Respondents’ Service Providers

Figure 6. Respondents’ Business Trip Frequency

Figure 7. Respondents’ Attitudes Toward New Technology

Figure 8. Respondents’ Reasons for Not Watching Mobile TV

Figure 9. Respondents’ Attitudes Toward Mobile TV

Figure 10. Respondents’ Attitudes Toward Mobile TV by Age

Figure 11. Respondents’ Attitudes Toward Mobile TV by Service Provider

Figure 12. Technology Adoption and Attitudes Toward Mobile TV

Figure 13. Respondents’ Attitudes Toward Mobile TV by Mobile Service Spending (US$)

Figure 14. Business Trip Frequency and Attitude Toward Mobile TV

Figure 15. Where Mobile TV is Viewed

Figure 16. Preferred Length of Time Watching Mobile TV

Figure 17. Preferred Mobile TV Content

Figure 18. KSF for Watching Mobile TV

Figure 19. Preferred Monthly Spending on Mobile TV (US$)

Figure 20. Plans to Buy Mobile TV-Enabled Handsets

Figure 21. Preferred Price of Mobile TV-Enabled Handsets (US$)