Pay-for mobile TV services in Europe and Asia have taken a hit this week. First up, German mobile TV operator Mobile 3.0 is reported to be closing down, according to Broadband TV News, which cites a Handelsblatt report. Mobile 3.0 was the surprise winner of a mobile TV license in Germany last year, when a joint-venture of local operators T-Mobile, O2 and Vodafone lost out on a bid to run a national DVB-H mobile TV platform. According to the Handelsblatt report, after the operators failed to win the license they were reluctant to provide handsets supporting the DVB-H network and instead released handsets supporting DVB-T transmissions free of charge. This reportedly damaged Mobile 3.0’s plans of a €5-10 subscription model.

Meanwhile, Mobile Burn reports that Toshiba has announced it is shutting down its Mobile Broadcasting Corporation subsidiary at the end of March next year, stating that the company has not gained enough subscribers due in large part to the popularity of the free TV broadcasting that many of Japan’s mobile phones are now capable of receiving. Last week the BBC announced it has begun a consultation into the use of its TV and radio channels over 3G mobile networks, stating that it would not look to create ‘made-for-mobile’ content and that, under the terms of its public charter, it must make its services available free of charge.