EU issues guidelines for mobile TV

The European Commission has taken a decisive step towards the promotion of competitive mobile TV services in the EU. It has published a set of guidelines for the authorization of mobile TV to accelerate roll-out of the service across Europe. Mobile TV revenues worldwide are expected to reach more than €7.8 billion (US$10.4 billion) in 2013.

The commercial services launched before summer 2008 in some European countries show that there is an increasing consumer demand: In the Netherlands alone, 10,000 users had already subscribed to the service at the beginning of autumn. Authorizations from member states for mobile TV services are needed before any commercial launches by operators. Along with the addition of the DVB-H standard to the EU list of official standards in March 2008, these guidelines underline the Commission's strong commitment to the promotion of new services for European consumers.

"Successful commercial launches of mobile TV in Austria, Italy, Finland and the Netherlands have proved that efficient authorization procedures are a key factor for the fast take-up," said Viviane Reding, EU Telecoms and Media Commissioner. "In Austria, 5,000 citizens were using mobile TV within the first weeks of its launch. With predicted growth in sales during the Christmas period, many more Europeans should have the opportunity to watch TV on the go. "This is why we want to give member states guidance on how to allow industry to get these innovative services on track as quickly and smoothly as possible. We stand for a collaborative approach between all actors involved including broadcasters, mobile operators and platforms operators, and we oppose heavy regulation or burdensome authorization procedures for the introduction of Mobile TV in Europe."

In close cooperation with member states and industry, the Commission has identified the main principles which regulators and governments in the member states should follow when authorizing operators to provide mobile TV services. The Commission today published these principles in a new Communication that will help member states to make mobile TV a reality and success for operators and consumers without delay.

To date, only a few member states, such as Austria, Finland, France and Germany have adopted legislation for new mobile TV services. The Commission's guidelines aim to keep up the momentum for mobile TV at EU-level, in order to create a coherent and favorable regulatory environment for take-off and take-up of this new service. The guidelines say that a straightforward, transparent and non discriminatory procedure for awarding licenses is the key to a successful approach avoiding delays.

The quality of the service delivered to customers, including indoor coverage and transmission quality, should be part of the award conditions. The guidelines furthermore recommend that frequencies made available for mobile TV should be withdrawn if the service has not started within a reasonable period of time. They also advise regulators to keep the authorization process open to all industry players and create conditions which encourage cooperation between telecoms operators (providing the service) and broadcasters (providing the content). Finally, they call upon the industry to make sure that DVB-H based mobile TV services in every EU country work together. One way to do this is choosing non-proprietary technologies, which all consumers would be able to use without extra plug-ins and regardless of which device they use, to access mobile TV content.

Light regulation and clear licensing regimes will give industry the legal certainty needed to rapidly launch mobile TV offers. The Commission will keep a close eye on progress made and will not allow any unreasonable demands to delay progress in Europe. It will continue to promote the exchange of information, experience and best practice between national authorities and other stakeholders. Moreover, the switchover process from analog to digital TV and the Telecoms reform will facilitate access to new spectrum, which can be used for the provision of mobile TV services.