Sports key to 3G
July 9, 2004
EU Competition Commissioner Mario Monti outlined the importance of sports and especially football in new media delivery mechanisms such as 3G networks.
Speaking at a workshop on new media access to audiovisual content in Brussels, Monti said it is crucial to ensure access to attractive content which is generally perceived by mobile operators as being an important driver for 3G mobile services growth.
Monti believes that sports content is well suited to the technical limitations of mobile devices. He views sports rights for sports played during the whole season can persuading consumers to subscribe to an ongoing service. He added that consumers will only invest in 3G mobile phones if they have new features such as the possibility to watch their team or their favourite player.
The European Commission has tried to keep media markets open and ensure the markets for delivery of content is not restricted. Bur after looking into the availability of rights to major sport events, notably football, content providers had difficulties in acquiring rights for delivering content over platforms different from the traditional ones.
The commissioner acknowledged that some incumbent media companies may see new media providers as a threat to their revenues but indicated the Commission will intervene if behaviour of such companies fall outside of European competition rules.
Monti also encouraged companies to take into consideration of the future as the taste of the end users will change. It is likely that what is perceived as an attractive content might change.
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