OXFORD, United Kingdom-Adding to the worries of potential third-generation (3G) operators are announcements from the two public broadcasting organizations in Germany, ARD and ZDF, that they want to levy a monthly license fee on users of 3G handsets.
The two broadcasters claim the high-speed data capabilities of 3G terminals will enable users to receive radio and television programs, which should involve a license payment. German authorities are apparently reviewing the proposal, which calls for a monthly charge of more than 16 euros (US$15.70) per user, which would take effect from 2005.
Separately, the satellite TV broadcaster Sky is preparing to launch the first two-way short message service (SMS) via television in an attempt to gain more revenue from cell-phone users. Insiders said the service would be built around live sports programming, such as soccer games, with a charge of around 0.50 euro (US$0.49) per SMS sent via the satellite settop box.
Sky, which already operates a one-way SMS service, is keen to boost its interactive TV revenues by tapping into the cell-phone community. The company has admitted to selling more than 360,000 ring tone downloads, costing between 1.50 euros (US$1.47) and 4 euros (US$3.93) each, to existing Sky subscribers.
