Mobile content: A licence to print money?

NEWS In four years' time Europeans will be spending almost twice as much on content for mobile phones than content for PCs. By 2006 consumers will be dishing-out E3.3bn (£2.02bn) per year on content through mobiles. According to Jupiter MMXI, this will compare to just E1.7bn (£1.04bn) via PCs. But industry watchers say providers of PC content, such as online publications, will not lose out. Increasingly these providers are realising the importance of also developing a mobile platform. Pete Kumik of digital rights management company Sealed Media said he was "not surprised" by the figures. He said: "We see mobile as being a strategically important platform to access content from." However, he added: "Providers see mobile platforms as something that will happen sometime in the future. But they're not rushing to do it at the moment." Oliver Beauvillain, analyst and author of the Jupiter MMXI report, said that providers of content for PCs will not necessarily be hurt by this. He said: "Most content providers believe most of the internet should be free. The Wall Street Journal is the only case of a traditional provider that has managed to impose a change successfully." He explained that more and more of these kinds of organisations are looking at how to introduce a mobile platform. The likely scenario is through SMS news or entertainment alerts. The Financial Times is a prime example of a provider that has moved into mobile. It launched its FT Mobile service last year which sends users SMS news alerts. Content providers have so far been disappointed with the kinds of payment systems available. They have also had to battle against consumers who don't want to have to pay for something that was free in the past.