Mobile

Social Media Portal Landscape - Mobile

What

Mobile web 2.0 is a hugely growing area in the social networking environment and it takes almost as many shapes via a mobile device as it does on a desktop. Mobile social networks are built around the premise of connecting user profiles, just as they are on the web. Mobile social software exists in many forms, from mobile applications to instant messaging. Mobile web 2.0 is all about portability and connectivity; connecting with people regardless of where you are.

Popularity

A large percentage of social networks, online communities and user generated content (UGC) sites offer a mobile friendly version of their service - which is proving popular with users globally. Improved handset functionality and more affordable mobile operator costs are paving the way for sophisticated mobile web 2.0 experiences for users.

Many mobile operators in countries such as the United Kingdom now advertise mobile contracts as coming with ?free access to Facebook, Bebo and MySpace,? which in actuality translates to free mobile internet. Commonly, these mobile versions also cater for direct mobile to website photograph and video upload - enabling users to have an almost truly immersive mobile experience.

Other popular areas seeing high pick up amongst consumers is Instant Messenger via mobile and voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) which enables free voice-to-voice calls when connected via internet ? current GPRS speeds mean that VoIP is not a practical alternative for users wishing to use this when they are truly mobile, as opposed to when they are connected to a fixed wireless internet connection.

Mainstream

Mobile social networks and software started to really come into their own with lowering of mobile internet costs, the introduction of smartphones and proliferation of social networks on the desktop web. The smartphone, which offers a touch screen, 3G, often full keyboards and built in cameras, lend themselves perfectly to the mobile social-surfer.

These combinations have led to the development of typically mobile social networks such as Twitter ? a microblogging service originally designed for the mobile handset but most commonly used on the web now. Twitter has experienced phenomenal growth particularly throughout 2009, with reports of an incredible 1000% increase in users.

Mobile instant messenger is becoming more and more popular, particularly services such as Fring and Nimbuzz that allow users to sign in to multiple instant messenger (IM) and chat clients as well as make internet voice (VoIP) calls and manage their Twitter account from within one application. It?s worth noting that desktop IM services such as Trillian from Cerulean Studio created mobile version of its popular technology for the iPhone in June 2009. Adding a number of social media features the service also enables the use of Twitter and other social media driven technology; an interesting move by possibly the most successful multi-user IM clients to date.

Growth

An area expecting to see massive growth in this market are geo location based social networks, such as GyPSii and Dodgeball ? a US based mobile network that was purchased by Google in 2005. In February 2009, Google launched Google Latitude (a location-based or location-aware service), a tool that allows mobile users to map (or track) their friends in real-time; seeing where in the world they are, right down to the street, through Google Maps. Users can control who sees their location, and they can also chat directly with friends through IM, SMS or a phone call.

Asian countries such as Japan, Korea and China are leading the way in mobile social networking with some of the more popular mobile networks, such as Cyworld in South Korea and Mixi in Japan.

The benefits of adding your mobile service to SMP

Better communicate your service to your audience
Reach brands, marketers and advertisers that are looking to connect with your target audience
Update your users to developments of your software or technology through SMP
Connect with potential stakeholders, media and researchers raising your visibility raising your visibility
Differentiate your approach, products, service and/or technology from your competitors
Update your stakeholders and target audiences with case studies, events, press releases and/or whitepapers about your mobile software or technology
Submit news scoops about your resource through SMP to be considered for social media news
List other assets of what your resource possesses that relate to the social media Landscape and demonstrate the other relationships that it has
Share your expertise through opinion and thought leadership articles published on the SMP site reaching your audiences

Are you in the mobile social media space?

Become part of the SMP Landscape by adding your mobile service