The mobile adult content market is forecast to more than double in size, according to figures release Monday. A new study from Juniper Research anticipates that the mobile smut market will grow from a $1.4bn business in 2006 to over $3.3bn by 2011.

The research house believes that Europe will be the most lucrative region over that period, due to its many developed markets and high priced content, closely followed by the Asia Pacific.

Over the 2006 to 2011 period, mobile adult entertainment services are forecast to generate a total of $14.5bn in revenues, with Europe contributing 39 per cent and Asia Pacific delivering 33 per cent.

Bruce Gibson, research director at Juniper Research said that the equation is simple, “sex sells and the underlying drivers mean that the demand is pretty constant”.

“Adult content business models have succeeded in other major delivery media: print, cinema, DVD, PPV TV etc. There is no reason why the mobile channel should not be equally profitable for adult content industry players,” he said.

“Mobile is about fun and instant gratification,” said Gibson. “I think the biggest opportunity is at the casual and “softer” end of the adult market – lads in pubs sharing a video clip after a few pints and people looking for a bit of fun when they have spare time to kill – not the hard core stuff,” he said.