HAMPSHIRE, England - The global market for mobile adult content grew by 36 percent in 2008 to reach an estimated $2.2 billion in revenues, according to a study released this week.
The new report from UK-based Juniper Research predicts the mobile market will grow to nearly $5 billion by 2013, with live video-chat sites dominating the field.
The numbers appear to indicate that the mobile content delivery platform is reaching its potential faster than expected, given that the same research firm's 2007 report projected mobile revenues of $3.5 billion by 2010.
Although the North American market has not yet opened up to adult content, consumers in Western Europe are spending more money on mobile access to adult websites and applications. TechCrunch reports that the European market has benefited from increased sales of 3G phones, which U.S. consumers have been slower to adopt.
Western Europe's share of last year's worldwide adult mobile revenue was 42 percent, compared to only 2 percent from North America.
As TechCrunch reports, the lack of age verification systems for U.S. and Canadian mobile carriers is the major barrier that prevents content producers from exploiting the North American market.
It's been suggested that North American service providers do not wish to be associated with the adult industry, but this may well change in the coming years as more producers offer content optimized for mobile devices.
