Just 26% of U.K. and U.S. mobile entertainment users are currently satisfied with their services, according to research results from the Mobile Entertainment Forum and LCC.
The findings were released as part of MEF’s Quality of Experience initiative led by members LCC and Zandan, and they found that while cost is a still a key factor, value is even more significant, particularly to UK users. Subscribers in the U.K. are willing to pay a premium but in return they expect a high quality of service. Transparency of pricing is however, vital whether subscribers are in the U.S. or U.K. For instance, if the data charges are additional to the content download, users want to know.
The highest current satisfaction rates are for Mobile TV in the American market (37%) and music downloads in the U.K. (32%). In general, subscription based services such as mobile chat, mobile TV and information services are popular with U.S. users. In the U.K. downloaded entertainment including wallpapers and ringtones are preferred.
“While the mobile entertainment market still represents vast potential, it is time to convert that opportunity into hard revenues. To do this the industry needs to take a close look at the experience we provide for users,” commented Patrick Parodi, Global Chair, MEF. “There will inevitably be some growing pains as mobile entertainment moves from an emerging market to an established media and entertainment channel. However, the industry must collaborate to focus on providing a seamless user experience, boosting subscriber satisfaction and encouraging mass adoption.”
This is the first stage in MEF and LCC’s global research study looking into user experiences of mobile entertainment. The research, as part of MEF’s Quality of Experience initiative, aims to establish industry-wide key performance indicators (KPIs) to dramatically improve user experience and, consequently, uptake.
Led by LCC and Zandan, the MEF Quality of Experience (QoE) initiative is also supported by Alcatel-Lucent, Buongiorno, Celltick, Hungama Mobile, mBlox, Motorola, Motricity, Musiwave, Orange, Telephia and Vodafone.
Almost 3000 consumers were questioned on a full cross section mobile entertainment including ringtones, mobile TV, mobile video clips, mobile information services, mobile chat, wallpapers, logos, full track music downloads and mobile games. Additional countries being assessed will include France, Germany, Italy, Romania, Spain and Singapore.