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Kudos to Mark Hawkins and the team over at the Mobile Data Association (MDA) for bringing media and U.K. mobile operators together in a partnership that recognizes the skills gap that threatens to stunt the spread of mobile data services and, ultimately, the growth of the

MOBILE SOCIAL NETWORKING USERS WILL NUMBER MORE THAN 641.6 MILLION by 2013, according to the latest predictions from Informa. A new report from the company says that at the end of 2008, there were just 92.5 million users of mobile social networking services, but that will skyrocket to between 641.6 million and 873.1 million by the end of 2013. It adds that the most popular mobile social services

TWO-THIRDS OF TWEETS COME FROM THE WEB, says a new report from Rapleaf. The big news today is that location information is coming to Twitter, as the service will make location information about its users available. But Rapleaf says that 65 percent of users’ messages come from their PCs. 6 percent come from text, 4 percent come from the mobile web, and another 5 to 9 percent come from BlackBerry and iPhone apps. Source The bottom line: This is sort of a chicken-and-egg situation. Does the fact that roughly a fifth of tweets come from mobile users make location information slightly irrelevant, or will the availability of the location info drive more mobile usage? We’ll take the glass-half-full view: getting 20 percent of tweets from mobile devices is a solid amount, and giving users the chance to leverage their location should increase it further. ----- MOBILE AD BUDGETS BUCK THE WIDER DOWNWARD TREND, and will hit $5.7 billion by 2014, says Juniper Research in a new report. While overall ad spending is being hit by budget cutbacks, mobile is set to grow, as it offers engagement with the consumer and a more quantifiable ROI than other mediums. Still, that $5.7 billion will only account for 1.5 percent of the total global ad spend in 2014, with many advertisers as yet unconvinced that mobile has a big enough reach to justify higher spending. Source

Editor’s note: MSG warmly welcomes Carlo Longino, who will contribute a mix of news and commentary starting with today’s Data Points post. Carlo – a writer, analyst and consultant who blogs about the mobile industry at MobHappy.com – has a long and impressive track record in all things mobile.

ALMOST HALF OF MOBILE DOWNLOADERS GRAB APPS MORE THAN ONCE A WEEK, according to some research from GetJar.com, a cross-platform app store. GetJar’s users are an active bun…

41 PERCENT OF CONSUMERS WILL MAKE SMART PHONES their next device, according to Yankee Group research. The report also reveals that trends within the smartphone ecosystem are shifting the balance of power between equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and operators. Yankee further suggests smartphones are the most competitive battleground in wireless today, and predicts U.S. penetration will reach 38 percent by 2013. More competitive device entrants, tighter budgets, and increased consumer expectations are factors that will force OEMs and operators to collaborate in order to grow. Source The bottom line: The proliferation of full-featured handsets and the advance of payment mechanisms (other than the ones operators offer) have created some tension, making this an interesting space to watch. It's also worth pointing out that, while 41 percent will choose smartphones, the majority (59 percent) of consumers are not going for smartphones as their next device, nor may they even care to upgrade. *** IDLE SCREEN TECHNOLOGY ENGAGES 82 PERCENT IN TRIAL by Celltick's LiveScreen Media platform. The Telefonica mobile operators group announced the launch of an innovative idle screen marketing solution, Livescreen Media, which broadcasts news, sports, business, entertainment and lifestyle teasers - as well as advertising messages directly to the mobile idle-screens. Movistar, the Mobile Phone Company from the Telefonica Group, tested the service as part of a six-month trial in Mar del Plata, Argentina, involving around 5,000 customers, and results showed 82 percent of users engaged with the new communication channel on the idle screen. The platform is also able to segment users based on location, handset type and areas of interest which are generated from tracking user response to idle screen messages. Revenue is generated from content downloads, subscription services and advertising fees. Source