Europe will experience explosive growth in revenue from online content over the next five years, according to a study by the European Commission. The study anticipates revenue growth related to online content will amount to $10.7 billion (8.3 billion Euros). This estimate represents a 400 percent leap from where the continent stands today. The study, entitled “Interactive Content and Convergence: Implications for the Information Society,” attributed the expected increases to stem from the spread of broadband, the rollout of advanced cell phone networks and increasing popularity of digital devices. In particular, sectors where online content would experience the greatest revenue gains included music (20 percent) and video games (33 percent). The two main obstacles the EC identified as standing between anticipated gains and actual ones are the unresolved issues of intellectual property rights and interoperability. In all, the EC found 36 specific impediments to the growth of the online content market. These included the varying levels of connectivity across the European Union, the slow uptake of 3G in Europe, confusing data tariffs, piracy and the cost of digitizing content. While some of these problems were global in nature, others were particular to Europe, a direct result of its market and legal framework, the EC said. The study was conducted as part of wider effort to assemble a set of proposals relating to content in the Europe Union, which is scheduled to be announced in the second half of 2007. The study is available here as a PDF. Release