Chinese Youth Heaviest Mobile Web Users, U.S. Youth Heaviest Email Users

Mobile Internet access is far and away the "killer app" for smartphones, it appears.

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Mobile Users Prefer Browsers over Apps

Although about a third of U.S. mobile phone subscribers used a downloaded application in August, according to comScore, and app downloads have shown impressive growth, many mobile device users appear to think browsers offer the better user experience.

Mobile users polled by Keynote Systems for Adobe reported a preference for mobile browsers to access virtually all mobile content. Games, music and social media were the only categories in which users would rather use a downloaded app than browse the mobile web.

Mobile Users Prefer Browsers over Apps - eMarketer

Mobile Gmail Now "Feels" More Like an App

Google has improved the performance of Gmail on an iPhone, suggesting that the performance gap between native mobile apps and web apps will grow smaller over time.

The new improvements make scrolling faster. In fact scrolling speed seems to match swipe gestures. This is helpful for long conversations where a few quick flicks will get you to the information you need much faster than before.

Also, toolbars stay on screen while users are scrolling, rather than moving down after each scroll. Being able to access toolbars from any point on the page should make it easier to triage email and move around the app.

Gmail in mobile Safari: now even more like a native app - Official Google Mobile Blog

Android Grows Rapidly as Platform for Mobile Web Browsing

Android devices have gained about 17 or 18 percentage points of market share over the last year in the mobile Web browsing market, says Quantcast.

Apple's iOS has lost share.

Mobile Internet Very Popular in China

For many people in China, the mobile Web is the Web. Not only do many homes in China not have (or need) landlines for voice communications, but also they don’t require hardwired Internet access for their fix of the Web.

With mobile phones, everything they need is in the palm of their hand.

The majority of consumers (54 percent) use their devices for applications including email, gaming and music, while 36 percent used their phones for text, SMS and voice only. Another 10 percent said they used their phones for calls only.

Mobile consumers in China also have surpassed their American counterparts when it comes to using the devices to access the Internet.

About 38 percent of Chinese mobile subscribers access the Internet from their mobiles, compared to 27 percent of American mobile subscribers. That is not so surprising since many Chinese consumers only access the Internet from their mobiles.

Mobile Internet More Popular in China than in U.S. | Nielsen Wire

Not Your Imagination: People Do Different Things on Their Mobiles

The way U.S. consumers spend their Internet time on their mobile phones is different from the way they spend their time when interacting with Internet applications and services on their PCs, the Nielsen Company has found.

If total Internet use were one hour, the top PC apps would be social networking and blogs, at 13 minutes, 36 seconds of use. Games would occupy six minutes, six seconds. Email tasks would consume five minutes. Use of portals would come in at two minutes, 35 seconds. Search would occupy two minutes, six seconds.

On a mobile device, applications usage patterns are very different. Email activities account for 25 minutes, while seven minutes are consumed interacting with portals. Social networking and blogs would occupy six miinutes, 18 seconds, while search would occupy four minutes.

The Nielsen survey also found a28 percent rise in the prevalence of social networking behavior on the part of mobile Internet users, but the dominance of email activity on mobile devices also was highly pronounced, with an increase from 37.4 percent to 41.6 percent of U.S. mobile Internet time.

Portals remain as the second heaviest activity on mobile Internet (11.6 percent share of time), despite their double digit decline and social networking’s rise to account for 10.5 percent share means the gap is much smaller than a year ago (14.3 percent vs. 8.3 percent).

Other mobile Internet activities seeing significant growth include music, video and movies, both seeing 20 percent plus increases in share of activity year over year. As these destinations gain share, it’s at the cost of other content consumption. News, current events and sports destinations saw more than a 20 percent drop in share of U.S. mobile Internet time.

There seems to be a clear lesson here. People do not have unlimited money or time to spend with applications. So as applications proliferate, users will have to make choices about how they use their time. A day, after all, is a zero-sum game. People might be able to multitask up to a point, but only up to a point. Even if users had unlimited funds, they would not have unlimited time to spend on mobile applications.

“Despite the almost unlimited nature of what you can do on the web, 40 percent of U.S. online time is spent on just three activities, social networking, playing games and emailing leaving a whole lot of other sectors fighting for a declining share of the online pie,” said Nielsen analyst Dave Martin.

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How Does iPad Affect Smartphone Browsing?

For people who keep track of statistics such as smartphone operating system market share, device behavior and trends, the iPad and other tablets are going to complicate matters. Should these devices be tracked with smartphones, with PCs, or as a separate category.

Some might argue a tablet is like a smartphone, and should be included in smartphone stats, if the same operating systems are used for both the tablet and smartphone devices. Others will argue that will distort the smartphone data.

So far, it seems iPad usage is someplace between PC and smartphone usage, perhaps suggesting it might be a separate category.

"Among the 14 percent of our iPhone client users who use an iPad, their average session length is 12 percent longer than the average iPod Touch or iPhone users," says Kate Sellers Blatt, iPass director. Some other data suggest iPad owners use the Internet more than they do on their smartphones, but still far less than on their PCs.

Morgan Stanley estimates that iPad browsing activity already is greater than BlackBerry or Android smartphone activity, on a global basis.

If casual and anecdotal evidence is any indicator, most people use their iPads quite heavily in indoor environments, on couches, for example. Mobile devices also are used indoors, sometimes as much as half the time. But there are some indications iPad use is indoors as much as 90 percent of the time.

For the moment, I think it is more useful to consider tablets a separate category from smartphones or PCs, at least for tracking purposes.

Quantcast Blog

Mobile Web Will Win Over Apps

As intrigued as most people seem to be with mobile apps, mobile browsers not only are likely to catch up, but the attraction of an app--that it executes properly on a mobile screen--will diminish over time as mobile Web devices and browser-based alternatives start to work as they would if the user were on a PC.

"I think its crazy that every brand, company, agency and corporation is having an arms race to pump out their app," says Chris Brashear. "Mobile browsing is cross platform, faster speed to market, less expensive and ready to explode," he says.

Mr Brand Manager: Put down the app and walk away… there are larger opps in mobile

Apps or Mobile Web? It is Going to be a Toss Up

Today most mobile applications for smartphones are downloaded from “app stores.” According to ABI Research data, in 2009 consumers downloaded some 2.4 billion applications from such stores, and the download rate will accelerate over the next few years until in 2013 smartphone downloads are expected to peak at just below seven billion.

So you might be wondering whether this implies a decline of interest in mobile apps. Not really. What the forecast implies is that there will be other ways to get and use applications, namely using a mobile Web browser.

After 2013, smartphone download rates from app stores will start a slow decline, although total downloads from all sources will probably continue to grow, ABI Research believes.

ABI argues that more and more people will start visiting mobile websites authored using HTML5, which will mean applications can be run natively from inside Web pages where today external apps might be required.

Moreover, handset makers and service providers will pre-install apps on their products, such as social networking apps and some mobile office suites, removing the need for downloading those kinds of applications.

“App stores aren’t going away," says ABI Research Senior Analyst Mark Beccue."Following the 2013 peak in demand, the number of downloads in 2015 will have decreased only seven or eight percent."

But users will be able to gain the value of apps using their browsers.

Also, it is conceivable that mobile network operators will host their own app stores. Many observers think such efforts will enjoy only modest success, but there is one notable area where huge success could be possible.

If operators concentrate on providing downloadable apps to feature phones, that could be a big factor in newer and developing markets where smartphone penetration is lower.

User Experience Shifting to Mobile

As with just about every other Internet-mediated experience, the experience context is shifting from PC-based to mobile-based. As the way people share information changed in the shift from printed to online products, so the design and display of information and content likewise will be different as the mobile shift continues to gain traction.

People with experience in the production of text content will point out that the way headlines are written, the way text is formatted, the length of stories and distribution channels all have changed. Similar changes will happen with marketing and advertising campaigns as the mobile context becomes more important.

video

Social Networking Drives Mobile Web Activities

Without much fanfare, social networking has become a "killer app" for the mobile Web use by smartphone or feature phone users.

Or at least that is what one would surmise based on recent data from GroundTruth, which shows that more than 60 percent of U.S. mobile Web page views are to social networking sites.

A separate study by the GSM Association shows that in December 2009, about half the time they actually were using their mobile Internet access, U.K. mobile users accessing the Internet from their mobiles were going to Facebook.

So far, social networking is developing as the killer app for mobile broadband.

Global Reach of North American Mobile Sites: 80%

About 80 percent of North American mobile Web sites have substantial traffic from around the world, a study by Motally finds.

"If you divide the world into seven regions--North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa , Middle East and Oceania--80 percent of mobile sites get traffic from at least three regions outside their own. About 72 percent of applications are used in four or more regions, Motally says.

“Any investment in the mobile Web hould at least consider a global audience,” Motally says.

About 53 percent of sites and 41 percent of apps in Motally’s study drew significant visitors from all seven regions.

The other important finding is that feature phones, particularly in regions like South America, Asia and even Europe, are important devices for mobile Web traffic.

While feature phones aren’t a major component of U.S. mobile websites, they are responsible for over 20 percent of traffic in Europe and for over 40 percent in Asia and South America.

Mobile Browsing Still Just 1.3% of All Browsing, But Growing Fast

Mobile browsing now accounts for 1.3 percent of all Internet browsing, according to Net Applications. That measurement was taken in December 2009, which saw double-digit increases for virtually all mobile operating systems, with an unusually high increase for Android.

The Net Applications statistics confirm that most users continue to do most of their Web browsing on PCs, but also that mobile's share has steadily increased during 2009.

Both Windows and Mac devices lost a small amount of share in December, as Android began to make its presence felt, but all major mobile operating systems posted large percentage gains. Android grew  54.8 percent, while BlackBerry grew 22.2 percent. The Apple iPhone posted a 19-percent gain while Java ME grew 15.4 percent.

While the iPhone continues to account for the largest share of mobile Web browsing, Google's Android mobile operating system was by far the largest percentage gainer in December 2009,  accounting for 0.05 percent of all Web browsing, up from 0.01 percent in February.

It does appear an inflection point has been reached, however: the adoption curve appears to be steepening.

Mobile Internet Wave Coming: Who Wins?

If a "fifth wave" of computing is about to break, as analysts at Morgan Stanley clearly believe, the issue is who the wave's new winners and leaders will be.

The history of computing suggests that the companies that lead the prior wave do not lead the new wave.

Morgan Stanley seems to think that as social networking and mobility combine, a company such as Facebook could wind up in the "Mobile Internet Computing" leaders category.

Morgan Stanley also is high on Apple making the cut, as well. Should Apple pull that off, it would make history.

What Users Do on the Mobile Web

About 29 percent of mobile phone users logged on to the mobile Web at least once per month in 2009, up from 22 percent in 2008, say researchers at Marketer.

So what do those people use the mobile Web? About 19 percent search for local products and services. About 16 percent say they get information about movies and entertainment.

About 13 percent get information about restaurants and bars. Some 11 percent search fro products or services outside the immediate local area.

About four percent made a purchase of a physical items that had to be shipped, while three percent used a mobile coupon.

According to BIA/Kelsey and ConStat, many of those qualify as “heavy” users—those who go online via mobile more than 10 times each week. BIA/Kelsey and ConStat say heavy mobile Internet users represent about 21 percent of the total U.S. mobile population in October 2009, up from less than 15 percent a year earlier. And the overall average number of monthly mobile Web sessions has doubled in that time period.

Heavy users of text messaging and mobile e-mail have also increased over the past year. Nearly one half of mobile users text more than 10 times weekly, while 20 percent send and receive more than 10 mobile emails each week.

Non-local product searches seem not be as prevalent as local searches, which about 20 percent of users report they did in the last month.

Basically, consumers have doubled their use of the mobile platform for non-voice communications,” says Rick Ducey, BIA/Kelsey chief strategy officer.

Apple And Android Dominate U.S. Smartphone Web Traffic

It is starting to look like just two smartphone platforms "matter" where it comes to use of the mobile Web: the Apple iPhone and the Android devices, a new analysis by AdMob suggests.

AdMob’s October, 2009 measurements show that the iPhone/iPod Touch and Android phones account for 75 percent of mobile Web traffic in the United States.

Apple devices continue to dominate, with 55 percent share, but Android users in October represented 20 percent of all activity, up from 17 percent in September, 2009.

The iPhone and iPod Touch grew their share from 48 percent to 55 percent share over the same period.

The Blackberry ’s mobile Web traffic share went down from 14 percent to 12 percent, and Palm’s webOS shrank from 10 percent to five percent.

On a global basis, the iPhone operating system now accounts for 50 percent of all mobile traffic, up from 43 percent the month before.

Android has an 11 percent global share, which makes it third globally after Nokia/Symbian’s 25 percent share.

Since Verizon launched the Droid about two weeks ago, Droids now make up 24 percent of all Android mobile Web traffic. The HTC Dream, which is the oldest Android device on the market, is the only Android device with more share, at 36 percent of Android traffic. Give it a few more weeks. The Droid is shaping up to be the most-popular Android device so far.

The data suggests that the BlackBerry, though a worthy enterprise device, continues to lag as a smartphone choice for users whose key applications lean to the Web.

More U.K. Mobile than Fixed Broadband Users in 2011?

More people will use mobile broadband rather than fixed line broadband by 2011, mobileSquared predicts. It's the sort of shocking prediction that makes for a great headline, but also is misleading. The forecast, for the U.K. market, might lead one to conclude that users are disconnecting fixed broadband lines and using mobile instead.

But that is not what the forecast assumes. Rather, it primarily assumes continued growth of smartphone connections.

By 2011 the number of active 3G "smartphone" type devices in the UK will be 36.3 million. There also will be 6.4 million dongles and embedded devices in use, taking the total number of mobile broadband connections to 42.7 million compared to a base of fixed broadband connections of 42.5 million, mobile Squared projects.

To be sure, over time there will be more Internet access occuring from broadband-capable smartphones.
The firm estimates that between one percent and 10 percent of enterprise Internet traffic is already being generated from a mobile device, for example.

But most observers, and most users, likely would say that mobile broadband and fixed broadband are complementary, more than substitutes.

That noted, the application profile for mobile broadband likely will be distinctive. “Mobile will become the primary access point for brands and businesses communicating with its consumers within two years,” says Nick Lane, mobileSquared chief analyst. “Mobile is always-on, and the average user carries their device for an average of 16 hours a day. So if a company or brand is not already considering how to use mobile, then they need to because their customers are.”

As the typical mobile "phone" becomes a multi-purpose broadband device, it will be used for Internet applications. That is not to say the typical smartphone will replace a PC, or a fixed broadband connection. The application profile and mode of use will start to overlap. But each mode will retain key advantages for the bulk of usage. People will talk more on their mobile phones than on their PCs.

They will engage in research, document, calculation or process intensive operations, plus most long-form TV, on a PC or a notebook equipped for broadband access. But people will rely increasingly on their mobiles for social networking updates, location-related apps, real-time information and brief entertainment episodes, and sometimes for long-form video.

The point is that mobile broadband now consists of two distinct segments: smartphones and PC dongles. And while both overlap at times with fixed broadband, they are distinct. Wireless broadband used to connect PCs generally is a complement to fixed broadband access, not a substitute, though that will happen at times.

So the mobileSqured forecast, which essentially lumps all smartphone data accounts with PC dongle accounts to reach the conclusion that mobile broadband will be a bigger business than fixed broadband, is correct in one sense, but wrong in another. In fact, all forms of broadband access are increasing.

Opera Mini: More Evidence of Rapid Mobile Web Use

In March 2009, Opera Mini had over 23 million users, a 12.1 percent increase from February 2009 and more than 157 percent compared to March 2008.

Opera Mini users viewed over 8.6 billion pages in March 2009. Since February 2009, page views have gone up 17.4 percent. Since March 2008, page views have increased 255 percent.

In March 2009, Opera Mini users generated more than 148 million MBytes of data worldwide. Since February, the data consumed went up by 19.3 percent.

Data in Opera Mini is compressed up to 90 percent. If this data were uncompressed, Opera Mini users would have viewed up to 1.4 PBytes of data in March. Since March 2008, data traffic is up 319 percent.

http://www.opera.com/media/smw/2009/pdf/smw032009.pdf

iPhone Changes Mobile Landscape

Six months after the iPhone’s U.S. launch, has the device changed the mobile landscape? According to M:Metrics, the mobile media authority, the answer is yes. Today, the measurement firm reports that the iPhone is already the most popular device for accessing news and information on the mobile Web, with 85 percent of iPhone users accessing news and information in the month of January.

That's important because the iPhone probably has created a whole new segment within the wireless user and wireless device universe: that of the mobile Web device.

Until recently, surveys by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, for example, have shown relatively low usage of the mobile Web. The iPhone user pattern suggests latent demand exists and will surface if only user interface and charging expectations are addressed.

“Beyond a doubt, this device is compelling consumers to interact with the mobile Web, delivering off-the-charts usage from everything to text messaging to mobile video,” says Mark Donovan, M:Metrics senior analyst.

iPhone might also be showing there are new niches for mobile video as well.

M:Metrics found that a staggering 31 percent of iPhone owners watched mobile TV or video, versus a 4.6 market average, and more than double the rate for all smartphone users.

The iPhone arguably also has emerged as the most-successful mobile music platform. About 74.1 percent of iPhone owners listened to mobile music in January, compared to 6.7 percent of the total mobile audience. In part, that may be because iPhone users also are heavy iPod users. About 84 percent of iPhone owners who use an MP3 player use an iPod.

Demographically, iPhone users are similar to the demographics of other smart phone owners. They are more likely to be: male, aged 25-34, earn more that $100,000 and have a college degree, than the average mobile subscriber, M:Metrics reports.

Though it might be tough to quantify the precise impact of each contributing element, it seems clear enough that when users don't have to worry about the charges and have an easy way to navigate, they quickly will adopt new behaviors related to mobile Web usage.

High Latent Mobile Web Demand?

If iPhone users, and a recent study of smart phone users, are any indication, there is clear and vast potential for mobile Web applications, devices and services.

And that is despite the relatively low usage of mobile Web services at the moment. "It is amazing how unaware consumers are of what is, and what is not available" in mobile, Web and other forms of communications, says Elaine Warner, Compete.com analyst.

On the other hand, there is clear potential. “We asked smart phone users what was important to them and 68 percent said Web access was really important,” says Warner. Considering that just seven percent of respondents to the Pew study say they do so on a typical day, Compete’s findings suggest there is vast untapped potential.

One of the biggest struggles the mobile industry has is getting the user experience right, though Warner says the iPhone was a breakthrough.

“We did a study about iPhone and found the two things people want is surfing the Web and checking their personal email,” says Warner. “They still feel they can't do that easily.”

Along the way, application and service providers will have to adapt the context of mobile Web use. “You don't search for the same things you do on a PC as you do from a mobile handset,” says Warner.

“You don't want a Wikipedia page to be the top listing when you enter a search term, she says. “That’s not likely to be what you want.

More typically a user will want to find a place to get to, or something to buy.

Though “voice in your pocket or purse” was the initial “killer app,” sizable demand now exists in the “email in your pocket or purse, “music in your pocket or purse” and to a lesser extent “Web in your pocket or purse” user segments.

That few people have used the mobile Web up to this point is understandable. It has been a difficult experience, for the most part. And it may turn out that early iPhone users are particularly avid users of the Web.

But if Compete’s survey findings are any indication, there is pent-up demand for mobile Web access.