As day breaks in Delhi, a student on the train into the city catches segments of his favorite Bollywood show. A business executive receives updates on the latest stocks from a local news broadcast while walking to the office. A mother captures video of her little boy playing in the Talkatora Garden-all on wireless phones. The mobile multimedia revolution is taking India by storm.

In India, the mobile phone is becoming the device people rely on not only for basic communication, but also for entertainment on the go. Though it is easy to focus on India's need for low-cost devices for rural markets, technology providers cannot disregard the increasing importance of high-end, multimedia-rich phones in this burgeoning marketplace.

As India's wireless market continues its remarkable evolution, handsets increasingly are becoming the nexus of mobile content and applications. Growth in the mobile multimedia space-which is especially evident with India's youth market-shows a strong demand for mobile data content and introduces challenges that the wireless industry must overcome to attain full success in this bustling region.

Express Yourself
While mobile multimedia appeals to all generations, young Indian consumers are particularly enamored with this trend. With 500 mn citizens under the age of 25, this market presents massive growth opportunity. As India's young, urban consumers embrace multimedia communications as a mode of self-expression, they demand the features and capabilities that allow complete personalization.

Products of an expanding middle class, these urbanites rely on their handsets for a variety of reasons. Their insatiable appetite for advanced multimedia features, such as access to media content and social networking services, drives the sale of higher-end handsets. Constantly craving the hottest applications-advanced audio, high-definition imaging, increased video capabilities and rich connectivity-these consumers also drive higher replacement rates.

Content is King
As the aforementioned applications gain steam, data content rests at the epicenter of the mobile multimedia revolution. In particular, mobile music, gaming, Internet, TV, and video set the foundation for rich opportunities in India.

Mobile Music
Mobile music is moving into the mainstream Indian market at a rapid pace, particularly through the popularity of ringtones, ringback tones, FM music, and movie track songs. Consulting firm BDA estimates that 35% of total value-added services (VAS) revenue in 2007 came from ringtone and ringback tone sales in India. This percentage is likely to increase in the coming years, especially with the success and popularity of song-based Indian movies, which are similar to musicals.

At the high-end, consumers download, listen to and share music with ease on mobile phones. Visual radio, which allows consumers to view the artist/album information of the music they listen to, is also in high demand.

As India's mobile music market rapidly expands, Indian consumers increasingly demand MP3-quality audio, seamless access to ringtones/music libraries, and click-to-download capabilities on mobile phones. The Indian music industry undoubtedly thrives in large part owing to growth in the mobile music market.

Mobile Gaming
In a recent report, Gartner forecasted that worldwide mobile gaming revenue is on pace to total $4.3 bn in 2007, reaching $9.6 bn by 2011. Gartner analysts expect high-growth markets such as India to bolster mobile gaming growth even further.

As more gaming-enabled phones emerge in India, this feature is quickly becoming a mass-market phenomenon. Mobile games are increasingly interactive, contain life-like images, are easy to use and less expensive than PC games, further driving popularity. These characteristics present vast opportunities for developers, software companies, and consumers alike.

Mobile TV
Mobile digital TV for handsets is stirring a great deal of excitement in India, especially with the country's love for films, sports, and television. Doordarshan, in collaboration with Nokia, launched DVB-H services in New Delhi on May 23, 2007, and now provides eight free-to-air channels over mobile networks. It plans to expand this service to other major cities, demonstrating the strong potential for mobile TV penetration in this market.

Mobile Internet
According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, 38 mn Indians connected to the Internet via cell phones last year, up from 16 mn in previous years. Further, the Indian Cellular Association expects 200 mn people to access the Internet on their mobile phones by 2010. These optimistic metrics show the great importance of mobile Internet in India. People rely on their phones for real-time information, and the Internet is a key point of reference. Also, as the mobile banking industry takes off, Indian consumers will be able to experience easy, secure access to payments via phone.

Mobile Video
India's mobile media market is also experiencing an increase in adoption of video capabilities in handsets, including numerous options for video reception, viewing, capture/creation and sharing/uploading. This trend increasingly encompasses high-definition video. Indian consumers are also starting to enjoy the interactive capabilities associated with video sharing.

With the advent of these mobile music, gaming, the Internet, TV, and video trends, the move to mobile is proving profitable for players throughout the various levels of the wireless ecosystem. In particular, the Indian movie industry has had great success in migrating to the third screen. The industry produces more than 1,000 movies annually, attracting more than two billion viewers each year. Movie content, including video clips, ringtones, celebrity news and games, continues to penetrate the mobile world with great victory, and mobile multimedia sales represent a hefty chunk of profit for the Indian movie industry.

Fueling the Evolution
Handsets must have the appropriate capabilities to fully achieve this content delivery. Multimedia features cannot flourish without certain advancements including enhanced graphics and user interface technologies, OpenGL ES 2.0 API support, higher performing application processors, open standards, increased security, enhanced battery consumption management and other technologies that complement the multimedia experience.

To fully embrace mobile multimedia opportunities in India, the wireless industry must continue to develop scalable, feature-rich technology platforms that enable advanced, cost-effective products with the right features and functionality. Companies like TI have successfully developed competitive technology platform solutions and will continue to do so to sustain success in India's wireless market.

Robust product roadmaps answer the needs of all customers, while software reuse extends investments and enables quick time-to-market. Additionally, attractive service options must be available for all consumer segments. Semiconductor companies, handset manufacturers, and operators must work together to ensure that customers are satisfied and the market remains lucrative for all players.

Multimedia in the handset represents a true merger of mobility and entertainment. It's evident today, and as India continues its economic expansion, the mobile multimedia popularity will only grow. Across all generations, especially in India's youth market, we see growing demand for mobile multimedia, fueled by content and advanced handset capabilities. The possibilities are endless, and the evolution is just beginning.

Robert Tolbert
The author is worldwide product marketing manager, OMAP Processors, TI's Wireless Terminals Business Unit
vadmail@cybermedia.co.in