Wed 28 May 2008
Mobile Web Usage Is Swelling, Entrepreneurs Take Notice
Posted by Megan Dorn under Startup Ideas
I feel like I’ve been hearing about the mobile Web everywhere lately. Even my most technologically inept friends browse the Internet and check their emails on the go. Just yesterday I read an article on GigaOM called “Go Mobile Young Millenials, Go Mobile,” which highlights a report on mobile Web usage for social networking purposes by those ages 8-27.
The report, researched and released by In-Stat, forecasts that by 2012 more than 229.5 million people worldwide could be using mobile social networking services.
Social networking aside, IBM estimates that by 2011 the number of mobile Web users worldwide will approach one billion, a 191 percent increase from 2006, according to a study released last week.
So what does all of this mean for entrepreneurs, web developers, and business owners?
It means that if I were you, I would seriously consider advertising on the mobile Web. The In-Stat report estimates that businesses will spend $1.5 billion in mobile Web advertising this year, but that’s only a small fraction of the $486 billion expected to be spent on advertising as a whole.
In a few years nearly one billion people will be carrying Web access with them everywhere they go. That’s quite an audience, so capture it now. It’s true that the mobile Web still has a few kinks to work out, but it’s going to take off, sooner rather than later.
Are you working on, or have you recently launched, a new startup relating to the mobile web? Or, do you have thoughts on where the mobile web and business will intersect? Post a comment to share your thoughts.
17 Responses to “ Mobile Web Usage Is Swelling, Entrepreneurs Take Notice ”
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August 27th, 2008 at 7:40 am[…] said it once before, and I’ll say it again, the mobile Web is where it’s all headed. So if you’ve been waiting to […]
May 28th, 2008 at 2:23 pm
continuing on marketing to mobile is targeted mobile
the devices will be GPS enabled so your device will be able to target to you and the location
stop at this place and try/buy this item
walk/drive buy a book store, and an add for your interest pops up
also wifi marketing
based on your profile
May 30th, 2008 at 11:37 pm
Personally when I’m on the move i use my mobile on very rare occasions for data. Might not be the case with others, but mobile devices will have to develop a new kind of interaction to make me use them more. I presume the mobile devices will become more the today laptops than the phones they are today. But still, if you’d ask me, i prefer the comfort of my home to seriously browse the web.But in the next 10 years who knows what might develop, maybe a special contact lens will allow us to see virtual 3d images:).Only that i guess the market will really explode.
June 3rd, 2008 at 4:21 pm
I think that the trend will increase quickly. As more and more people use smart phones, and technology continues to double every 6 months, mobile internet will become more common.
June 4th, 2008 at 5:44 am
i think this could be a serious money churning bussiness
June 4th, 2008 at 3:42 pm
We are presently developing a mobile application that lets you put bets online trow mobile phone. I was really suprised by the speed and the quality of the project. It really looks awesome and i will certainly try to change the direction of my firm Web Orange to developing more mobile solutions. Mobile and internet is the future, we all know it, but who will grab a piece of the cookie.
June 4th, 2008 at 7:05 pm
Mobile CDN is building solutions specifically for mobile content delivery which has been very expensive and technically challenging.
We provide cost effective and radically simple mobile content delivery solutions. We can deliver content to any network and any device.
Having a web site on the desktop PC platform has become a necessity for any business in today’s environment. Mobile will create the same opportunities as the web did in the 90s but with the added benefits of anytime and anywhere access.
Entrepreneurs should consider the opportunities presented by:
Click-to-call mobile functionality whereby an ad click can lead to a direct call to a mortgage provider for example.
Location Based Services and GPS advertising. Book a Cinema ticket on your mobile and when you receive the confirmation there is an ad with a voucher for the cafe next to the cinema.
Anywhere access to information. Ansa and ChaCha offer answre services. Know everything within minutes. Someone argued that your favorite team never won the league in 1971. ChaCha can answer it within a minute.
Mobile banking, funds transfers and mobile POS transactions. A cell phone (correct term is a mobile device) is one of the three essential thing you carry with you. It will soon be the other two - the wallet and the keys.
Modularized devices - Modu can plug into transfer calls, data and contacts as the world smallest phone to you car stereo, PC, laptop and other devices by simply plug and play.
Most importantly, you need a partner who understands the mobile environment and opportunities. At MobileCDN we belive a mobile device can greatly advance the connections between communities and understand on a global scale. Everyone will have a mobile soon (Currently 3.3 Billion growing 4, 5 and 6 billion) ad we are here to help you capitalize on these opportunities and by developing best ecosystem for mobile innovation and enablement.
Mobilecdn.com
June 25th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Simply not having to open a laptop to just check a website quickly is the best aspect of the mobile web, to me.
June 25th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
The potential of the mobile web is massive. I predict a huge increase in use (as if it hasn’t happened already) as the mobile phones and PDA’s become more and more affordable and widely accessible.
June 27th, 2008 at 7:22 am
Alex, I was exactly the same way until I recently picked up my first touch screen phone (The Voyager from Verizon). It has made browsing the web AMAZING. No more using arrow keys as you just touch and drag to move the page or touch a link to go to it. No more having to crack open the laptop as I can now check something literally in a minute as apposed to 10-15 to get the laptop out, fire it up, open my browser and then turn it off and get it put back away. Very convenient!
June 28th, 2008 at 8:18 pm
I am eager to make my web site mobile-friendly.
I love using the mobile web for the same reason Eric cited on 6/27/08 at 7:22 am
July 2nd, 2008 at 3:16 pm
I use the web extensively - for work, to manage my teams, check my emails (Gmail for mobile), RSS feeds to search for houses to buy, and other needs (Google Maps (saves my day), news, and other data.
With a flat fee and unlimited data, and a selective choice of apps installed on your PDA/Blackberry, I end up not opening my laptop for days… if not weeks.
Waiting for the 3G iPhone to launch… hopefully my current projects will be profitable enough so I can treat myself to iPhoneCandy
July 2nd, 2008 at 7:04 pm
As the founder of a mobile web startup, I can see first hand mobile traffic building. JobMob.mobi is a mobile job board design specifically for busy people on the go. The mobile looks similar to the “regular” web did in 1998.
http://www.jobmob.biz - web
http://jobmob.mobi - mobile web
July 4th, 2008 at 5:56 am
Went to an Adobe event not so long ago and sat in on some lectures. A few mentioned that the majority of users visiting websites this time next year will be mainly from mobile phones/handheld devices. Excellent post.
July 4th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
should be interesting how far companies will go to get into this market
July 12th, 2008 at 2:11 pm
I don’t know about anyone else, but when it comes to my cell phone, I don’t appreciate receiving ads when I’m paying for the cell phone. Not so much on the internet on the computer however, it’s fair game for surfing.
July 13th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
So, this means the REAL web is going to look like crap if everyone designs for a teeny-weeny itty-bitty display. Alternatively, the cost of a web site is going to go up astronomically because there is no such thing as a mobile standard. There are dozens of popular phones, each with bugs and various oddities of display, etc. Agent detection becomes important to try to send out pages that work with phone A only to phone A users, etc. This is a nightmare best ignored by any sensible webmaster. Let the mobile users sort out which phones work with the REAL web and kill off the others. It’s like broken JavasCrap all over again with the browser wars. And then broken CSS. Now it’s broken mobiles. The only cost-effective answer is to wait for the dust to settle.