UK Leads European Mobile Music Market

UK Leads European Mobile Music Market

NEW YORK, July 24/PRNewswire/ --

- EU-5 mobile music retail revenues to exceed US$1.4 billion in 2012

Europe's mobile music scene is more advanced than that in the US. While
the UK is the biggest individual mobile music market in the EU-5, the other
countries -- France, Germany, Italy and Spain -- are reporting sharp growth
as well. eMarketer predicts that mobile music retail revenues in the EU-5
will reach over US$1.4 billion by 2012, up from US$267 million in 2007.
eMarketer expects ad-supported mobile music in the EU-5 to reach US$170
million in 2012, up from US$4.6 million in 2007.

To see chart, click here:

Mobile Music Spending in the EU-5, by Format, 2007-2012 (millions)
http://totalaccess.emarketer.com/images/chart_gifs/095001-096000/095967.gif

The US is the world's largest retail market for music. However, it lags
behind parts of Europe for mobile infrastructure, a justification for the
UK's more advanced mobile music market.

The joint venture service from Sky and Universal Music to enable
consumers to stream music on-demand or download onto MP3-playing devices,
including mobile phones and iPods, shows that companies are looking to meet
consumer demand for online and mobile music in the UK.

"Given consumers' reluctance to pay for music on their phones, marketers
are finding new opportunities to partner directly with carriers, labels and
even music artists themselves," says John du Pre Gauntt, eMarketer senior
analyst and author of the new report, "Mobile Music: Ads to the Rescue."
"Direct deals between brands and bands are no longer anomalies, but are part
of a growing trend by both parties to bypass intermediaries and go directly
to customers."

"Mobile works better as a marketing and customer relationship platform
than it does as a retail sales platform," Mr. Gauntt says. "Bands and artists
are increasingly using mobile to form direct relationships with their fans,
which are then monetized through other means, such as tickets to live shows,
merchandise and fan clubs."

Marketers will account for a greater proportion of that overall spending
as the ad-supported model for mobile music gathers steam.

About eMarketer

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Web site: http://www.emarketer.com

Source: eMarketer

Kris Oser, Director of strategic communications, +1-212-763-6033, or Samson Adepoju, Communications coordinator, +1-212-763-6044, both of eMarketer

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