BUSAN, Korea-High-speed mobile networks are taking hold in the Asia-Pacific region, providing a platform for multimedia services development, according to a new report from Telecommunications Management Group Inc.
The report, “Asia-Pacific Mobile Multimedia Outlook,” said the number of high-speed mobile subscribers rose 11.4 percent between 2000 to 2003. The Republic of Korea has the highest percentage of mobile subscribers connected to a high-speed network with 84.5 percent.
Japan and South Korea lead the world in mobile Internet penetration, said the report.
In addition, the report said operators are moving from time- to volume-based pricing for mobile Internet access.
The report also noted that high use of short message service may actually hinder advanced multimedia applications.
“Operators are making significant revenue from text messaging in countries where SMS is booming, such as China, Indonesia and the Philippines,” said Michael Minges, senior market analyst at TMG and former head of the International Telecommunication Union’s market research unit. “The downside is that it makes them reluctant to invest in faster networks and multimedia content.”
Another barrier to mobile multimedia is lack of Internet-enabled handsets, said the report.
