Comment: Content producers want mobile data rates slashed in ‘08

If the holiday wishes of a trio of interactive media executives come true, one third of Canada's media marketplace will no longer be inaccessible by the end of 2008. "The biggest change that should happen in Canadian new media as we stand is the CRTC's regulation of mobile bandwidth fees. That's the number one thing. One third of the media marketplace is completely shut down in Canada because of one monopoly's cost structure on bandwidth and downloads to cell phones. So you have companies like Amp'd Mobile, the world's most successful mobile content company, coming up here and going out of business within six months. You have companies unable to open, and users getting $10 fees for downloading one song. These fees are astronomical; they're at least two times higher than they are in the US, and at least three to four times higher than they are in Japan. It's just unbelievable. Mobile companies can not expand that part of their business."Now, mind you, they want to. And they're trying to with basic text applications and mobile shopping - little low-bandwidth things, but they're not able to get rich media. We're still doing frame-by-frame movie downloads to phones and we have to watch it at a lower frame rate because if we wanted to watch a whole movie it'd cost us $70 to download. "So that has to go. That has to be changed one way or another, whether it's through the , CRTC regulations, whether we convince Rogers to sell more and charge less. Whatever we can do get this going because it will open up a whole other world of new media in Canada - a world that's been open for five to 10 years in other countries and most people in Canada can't take advantage of because of the fees. It's a huge, huge area and it's growing astronomically in other parts of the world, and we have one monopoly in place who happens to be in control of it." -Geoff Whitlock, president and CEO, Lifecapture Interactive Inc. "The Canadian mobile wireless industry needs to offer realistic rates for mobile content. There are more cell phones than TVs or computers, and there are all kinds of wonderful content that could be offered, but the Canadian carriers charge excessive amounts of money for data transfer compared to other countries."Mobile carriers should see mobile content as an opportunity and put realistic price plans in place for consumers to access video on phones and handhelds, and create a revenue share or license for content from Canadian producers." - Diane Williamson, VP of marblemedia Interactive (a division of marblemedia) "In 2008 my wish would be to see the following:1. Mobile: I am hoping to see a major change in the mobile landscape. Something needs to be done to break the absolute control and the barrier that the wireless telcos have in place and which is limiting Canadian new media producers from creating innovative content and applications; and from competing domestically and internationally. Other sectors of the cultural industries would benefit from the opening up of the mobile/wireless platform including the music, book, film and television, visual arts, education as well as non-cultural businesses if the playing field and pricing models changed. The whole "off-deck" barrier has got to change. This is too important a platform to be allowed to be so controlled and over priced. 2. Education market for New Media: The education market in Canada is a potential major market for new media as it was at one time for documentary films. Because of the lack of a standard purchasing structure across provincial jurisdictions, students and teachers are missing out on the great potential for online new media programming and content that could satisfy the need for in class history, geography, culture and other content that can be delivered via rich media web. But the producers, in order to create the content and solutions, need to get paid and not just funded. A real educational market for new media has got to be shaped and defined. Although the word "education" cannot pass the lips of the feds because of jurisdictional issues, there is nothing to say that the feds cannot act as brokers in helping to shape a viable market that could lead producers to the vast national and provincial archived treasures waiting for producers to uncover and share with the 16,500 Canadian schools and over 3 million students. We blew it with SchoolNet which became the model for the world and then died where it was born. RIP SchoolNet." -Tony Tobias, president/executive producer, Pangaea Media & Music Inc.

Comment: Content producers want mobile data rates slashed in ‘08

Broadcast | December 18, 2007

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