An eMarketer report predicts U.S. mobile content revenues will rise from less than $1.15 billion in 2009 to more than $3.53 billion in 2014 -- at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 20 percent.
"The continuing advance of smart devices and the growing ubiquity of mobile broadband networks mean that consumers have to make fewer compromises when it comes to the consumption of games, music and video," said Noah Elkin, eMarketer senior analyst.
An improved user experience, and the ability to access an ever-expanding variety of multimedia content from cloud services, will attract many new mobile content consumers in the next five years.
The fastest growth will come from mobile music, which starts from the smallest base and will move from a market focused on ringtones to one where mobile broadband enabled users pay to access full-length songs from the cloud.
Games are the most popular mobile activity in number of users, and there is a growing emphasis on monetizing such content through downloads and advertising -- rather than shipping phones with games pre-installed.
The mobile video audience will increase threefold between 2009 and 2014, with the steady improvement of devices, the increase in mobile broadband availability and the emergence of over-the-top (OTT) viewing options outside the mobile carrier networks.
These factors will help boost revenue growth to a CAGR of more than 25 percent from 2009 to 2014.
"Platform integration is vital for the growth of mobile content," said Elkin. "The decade ahead heralds a wholesale shift in the content consumption experience. Consumers will expect games, music and video to be available on demand or via subscription on TVs, mobile and PC."