New research from Juniper Research has found that content paid for via carrier billing will provide operators with more than $14 billion in revenues over the next five years, according to a press release. 

The new research suite, "Digital Content Business Models: OTT & Operator Strategies 2015–2019" asserts that growth will be fueled by a dramatic rise in carrier billed payments made on devices such as tablets, consoles and smart TVs, according to the announcement. 

According to the research, existing deployments of carrier billing on app storefronts have produced a marked increase in paid conversion rates (more than 30 times those of credit cards in some instances). They have also enabled first-time monetization of unbanked consumers and younger demographics. Furthermore, the greater sophistication of third-party carrier billing solutions now permit subscription billing, allowing for ongoing content monetization, according to the announcement.

In addition, many storefronts have found that carrier billing integration results in an uplift in average transaction values as well as volumes, partly due to higher sales of bundled in-app virtual items.

The research also found that OTT content providers such as Amazon, Netflix and Hulu are now adding value to their subscriptions through the addition of original content such as Transparent, Bosch and Ripper Street. It said that the next step will be the acquisition of major sporting rights, but cautioned that the high cost will be a deterrent at the present time, according to the announcement. 

"Even for free streamed sporting events, audiences are rarely in excess of a million — to recoup the cost of a successful bid, OTTs would need a paying audience of perhaps 10 million in some cases," Dr. Windsor Holden, the report's author, said in a statement. "But by 2021, when the National Football League rights are due for renewal, we would be surprised if one or more OTTs did not bid for an exclusive live package."