HAMPSHIRE, England — Although regulations and prohibitions will continue to limit opportunities in the adult and gambling sectors, a recent report from Juniper Research indicates global mobile entertainment revenues could reach $64 billion by 2012.The report, “Mobile Entertainment Markets: Opportunities and Forecasts 2007 – 2012 (Second Edition),” also notes restrictions on gambling services in the key U.S. market are expected ease in the medium term.

Music, games and mobile TV will be the major contributors to the global mobile entertainment market which are expected to increase threefold within the next five years, from just over $20 billion in 2007, according to the report. Other significant mobile entertainment revenue generators include user-generated content.

The report says mobile music will remain the largest single sector of the mobile entertainment industry for at least the next five years. Revenues from music will rise from nearly $9 billion in 2007 to $17.5 billion in 2012, bolstered by the increasing availability of full-track download and streamed services, the former in both paid-for and rental formats.

Likewise, mobile games will retain its No. 2 ranking in terms of end-user generated revenues. Boosted by rapid growth in mass market “casual” gaming, revenues are expected to rise from just under $5 billion in 2007 to nearly $16 billion in 2012.

Meanwhile, strong growth also is expected from mobile TV, with many developed (and some emerging) markets launching dedicated mobile broadcast networks within the forecast period. This, plus increased adoption of streamed TV offerings, should push the market from $1.4 billion in 2007 to $11.9 billion in 2012, according to report author Dr. Windsor Holden.

“With revenues from voice services declining and messaging revenues flat-lining, last year finally saw a number of more sophisticated entertainment services begin to fulfill their potential and redress the balance,” he said. “With more widespread penetration of 3G handsets — or entertainment-focused 2.5G handsets like the iPhone — there is likely to be a much greater surge in both the adoption and overall usage in rich media services.”

Other prognostications from the report:
• China and the Far East will remain the largest regional market for mobile entertainment throughout the period, with revenues rising from $8.5 billion in 2007 to nearly $21.3 billion by 2012.
• Entertainment service adoption will remain constrained by difficulties with the user interface, network speed and coverage and the excessive cost of data services.