Japan and Korea lead mobile multimedia according to report

Telecommunications Management Group, Inc. issued a new report identifying the leading nations in mobile multimedia. Entitled "Superstars of the Mobile Internet," the publication provides the statistical basis to show which countries lead in using mobile handsets to download entertainment, exchange picture messages and access the Internet.

Not surprising, according to this report Japan and South Korea are leading the world in mobile multimedia use. The only other nation with double-digit penetration is France, part of a quartet of large European countries in the top ten (along with
Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom). The tech-savvy Nordic nations are also present in the list, represented by Finland, Norway and Sweden. The only other Asian country in the top ten is Singapore, ranked number four.

Japan and South Korea accounted for over three quarters of all mobile multimedia users in 2000; by 2003, their share had declined to 57% of the 86 million mobile multimedia users around the world. TMG forecasts that the number of mobile multimedia users around the world will near 110 million in 2004.

Michael Minges, Senior Market Analyst at TMG notes "the launch of higher-speed mobile networks around the world is finally beginning to have an impact on mobile multimedia usage. Greater bandwidth coupled with a growing proportion of Internet-enabled handsets is leading to more compelling content and starting to increase demand for mobile multimedia."

TMG estimates that mobile multimedia and text messaging services generated US$ 45 billion in revenues for mobile operators in 2003. The report features statistics on mobile markets for 45 leading economies.

The top ten nations by percentage of population using mobile phones to access the Internet, 2003 include Japan (29.5%), Rep. Korea (24.8%), France (10.5%), Singapore (7.1%), Sweden (7.1%), Germany (6.1%), United Kingdom (5.0%), Finland (4.1%), Norway (3.9%) and Spain (3.4%)