Maverick China Research

Today was the first Mobile Monday event in Beijing, and focused on one of the most successful WVAS segments in China over the last couple years - mobile music. Companies presenting at the event were Linktone, ColorMe, and Rock Mobile. While intellectual property rights are not and have not been strongly enforced in China (to say the least), WVAS companies, record labels, and mobile operators have been able to make money off mobile-related music products such as ringtones, ringback tones, and IVR. Digital piracy, however, remains a larger problem for richer mobile music services such as full-track downloads, especially as handset vendors release new music-oriented mobile phones with larger memory storage and the ability to transfer music files directly from PCs. Maverick Co-founder Dave Carini is on the advisory board for the Mobile Monday community in Beijing. In 2006, Mobile Monday sessions have covered a wide range of hot topics in China including Mobile Music, Mobile Advertising, Mobile TV and Video, Mobile 2.0 and Communities, and Mobile Payment. For more information about Mobile Monday, visit www.mobilemonday.cn.