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According to the study 'UK Mobile Content Survey: What Consumers Want', 50% of revenues come from the 'mobile cash rich' 25-34-year-olds, and the average mobile content spend in the UK is £6.09 per month.

This figure exceeds, however, what is deemed the optimum amount that consumers are willing to spend per month, on top of their voice and messaging fees - £5. Services and content priced above the £5 monthly threshold will appeal to less than 5% of UK mobile users, the report states.

Putting this small monthly figure in context, 50% of respondents said mobile content prices were too high.

'Today, the regular buyers of mobile content, those who purchase a minimum of one item of content every three months, represent one-fifth of mobile users,' said the report's author, Nick Lane, principal analyst at Informa Telecoms & Media.

'However, the survey uncovers a further 30% of occasional consumers that will purchase at least one item of content per year. If the wireless industry can encourage these occasional spenders

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to regularly consume content, the addressable mobile content market spend over a three-month period will expand by 150%.'

'Heavy spenders' who were prepared to pay a lot more for mobile content represent just 1% of the market, Lane told us.

When it comes to mobile content categories, ringtones lead the way with 12.5% of respondents spending in this area over a three-month period, and games are second with 8.3%. Full-track music downloads and images complete the top four.

What services did users most want to access via their mobile? Location-based services and mobile banking topped the poll.

The report highlights a number of obstacles for market development, however. When it comes to the supply of content, there can be confusing rights issues to negotiate, as well as further costs. But the most significant obstacle is the approach of the operators themselves and their pricing of the services.

A key concept, Lane believes, is the provision of 'content service bundles'. He believes flexible content tariffs should clearly cover consumption of content, such as mobile TV and music downloads, for example. In particular, avoiding 'bill shock' in what is a sensitive market, should be a key priority.

'The door is now wide open for mobile advertising to subsidise mobile content and inflate the mobile content user base,' is Lane's conclusion.

Data for the survey was gathered from 2,000 respondents via the Starcom Mediavest media communications agency. You can more details on the Informa report here.