white paper » mobilegroove

In brief: Steve Ives, Taptu CEO, recounts the key takeaways of the new report showing the growth of Mobile Touch Web sites outpaces the growth of apps in the Apple and Android app stores why commerce rocks on the Mobile Touch Web PLUS a look a the Virtual Roundtable and what mobile industry entrepreneurs, authorities and pundits think about the Mobile Touch Web and the potential impact on how we live, work and shop.

Taptu, the search and discovery engine that indexes touchscreen content, reports that the Mobile Touch Web – websites and destinations created specifically for access via touchscreen devices such as the Apple iPhone – has grown 35 percent since last quarter. Unlike other mobile Web content, this content stands out through finger-friendly layouts and light-weight pages that are faster to load over cellular networks. The report, which covers January 2010 thru April 2010, also shows Mobile Touch Web sites rose to 440,100 from 326,600 in January.

In brief: An exclusive interview with JumpTap CMO Paran Johar connects the dots in this week's announcement to support permission-based advertising with a new feature that lets consumers choose mobile display ads they will accept. PLUS a wider discussion of the value of

In brief: An analysis on mobile search strengths and shortcomings based on some eye-opening usage stats presented at the recent Mobile Search Masterclass; a summary of key findings from MSG's own mobile voice search white paper (examining how Google stacks up against ChaCha and Vlingo using Yahoo as the default search engine); and the business case for a new breed of mobile search tools (ranging from social search to SMS search to content verticals) PLUS news you may have missed from Alabot, an Indian company specialized in natural language and artificial intelligent applications which enable interactive, multi-lingual mobile search. No matter how you look at it (and who you ask) mobile search, the model that has effectively retrofitted Internet search for mobile devices, is riddled with shortcomings This was the message that came across in the interviews I conducted for Mobile Advertising Research UK, the presentations I and other search authorities made during the recent Mobile Search Masterclass in London, and, more recently, in the mobile search assessment white paper (Pump Up The Volume: An Assessment of Voice-Enabled Web Search on the iPhone) I co-authored with Peggy Albright. (DOWNLOAD) Is mobile search broken? More importantly, how can we fix it? These are the questions I put to a variety of executives representing companies from across the mobile search and advertising business ecosystem. Read between the lines, and their answers - along with my own conclusions - point to areas of improvement and opportunity in mobile search. MOBILE ADVERTISING RESEARCH UK Primary research and C-Level interviews with agencies, brands, operators and third-parties reveal mobile search is missing the mark. Their gripe: the poor quality of mobile search (specifically universal search powered by keyword queries and PageRank algorithms) is to blame for a lack of interest and investment in paid search advertising. As a leading executive at a global brand put it: "Just between the two of us, our spend for search is by far not in the digits yet - and it won't be....We do a lot in mobile, but the basics of search are not yet at the level of sophistication consumers would expect from us." At the other end of the spectrum, agencies are far from upbeat about the short-term outlook for mobile search. As one managing director at a mobile marketing agency put it: "Just the way the content is indexed prevents advertisers from creating a cohesive plan to integrate search in their [mobile] advertising strategies. There is just not the volume to get in and really do some targeted search [advertising], and that's what brands want: to make advertising personal and relevant to every search the consumer makes."

It has been a crazy-busy, exciting week at MSG! The Mobile Advertising Research U.K. report, which combines desk research with extensive primary research and surveys to offer invaluable insight into the attitudes of people and companies across the emerging mobile advertising business ecosystem, is ready for release after receiving the final polish. Regular readers will recall that MSG was commissioned to conduct Mobile Advertising Research UK, a project research endorsed by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA), to expertly document the state of the mobile advertising industry in the U.K. and identify growth opportunities in the emerging mobile advertising marketplace. The report -- which combines valuable consumer insights gathered by ÆNEAS Strategy Consulting and Management (coordinated by my esteemed colleagues Tarik Fawzi and Atva van Zanten) and qualitative research based on more than 20 interviews with operators, enablers, agencies and brands contributed by MSG -- marks the first in a series of region-specific reports that will include Germany (2009) and North America (2010). During the inaugural event (Mobile Advertising Research U.K.) last week in London, Tarik and I presented an overview of key findings (documented by MSearchGroove here) and revealed the results of an online survey of over 1,000 British. consumers. Pricing is GBP 2,999 ($4,866) for the report, and a 500 GBP discount is available for MMA/IAB members, and people who attended the event. For more information, email James Cameron (james@camerjam.com) or call +44 7940 749874. And speaking of reports, I am pleased to announce that I will provide a sneak-peak at the results of a performance analysis of voice-enabled mobile search services from search giants Google, Yahoo! & ChaCha during a special Mobile Search Masterclass in London on June 30.

MSG mobile search research (the profiles and analysis I share on MSG, and the new-release white paper assessing search, which I co-created with my esteemed colleague Peggy Albright) has attracted the attention of a growing community of readers and influencers across a variety of online destinations and industry organizations. I am pleased to report this work has also sparked interest at Eyefor Travel Research, a business intelligence firm known as the "leading voice of online travel." Andrew Merrie, research analyst and Headmaster of the School for Mobile (the firm's initiative for educating the travel and tourism industries on opportunities in mobile), reached out to me earlier today to collaborate on the firm's series of free reports (which are essential reads chock-full of case studies, key statistics, and best practice) focused on mobile technology and solutions. There is a special emphasis on mobile search (which we agree is the linchpin of a range of effective strategies to deliver mobile advertising, commerce, and CRM). By way of background, the Eyefor Travel report series consists of Vol.1 Mobile Technology in Travel: The Introduction, and Vol 2, Mobile Technology in Travel Report: The Detail. Vol 3 Mobile Technology in Travel Report: Consumer Insight is work in progress, but you can sign up here for an alert when it is released later in June. A trend that stands out is the new popularity of SMS search schemes as a sure-fire way to reach a mass market. As Andrew puts it: "SMS search is a tool that 99 percent of customers know how to use. In a consumer-focused industry such as ours, it [SMS search] represents a good first step in how companies need to move forward." Another advantage beyond intuitive usability: Proven monetization models around the delivery of related text links and advertising. This point came through loud and clear in this week's AdAge article, which outlines the advantages of SMS search, and takes a look at the companies (notably 4INFO, which MSG profiled here, and ChaCha) cashing in on its newfound popularity among users and advertisers. Rita Chang, who wrote the piece, contacted me for the article, and has since arranged a follow-up call to discuss the mobile search competitive landscape. The intention is to write a comprehensive feature on the models and companies I think set the bar. I gladly support her in this work, and welcome other journalists to reach out to me for comments or just a few company contacts. The increasing excitement around SMS search isn't limited to the U.S. (the focus of Rita's AdAge article). It's also going full-steam in Asia, where Mobile Content Networks (MCN) - a provider of mobile search and revenue solutions that deliver people connections to content, not links to content, on their mobile phones - has chalked up an impressive list of operator customers for its SMS search, which emphasizes content discovery instead of answers to specific search queries. Today marks the company's official launch of Smart Search (aptly named) in partnership with Smart Communications, the Philippines' leading mobile operator with 36.9 million subscribers.

It's a busy next couple of days as I put the final finishing touches to my mobile advertising webinars. First is my contribution (together with Dusan Hamlin, Managing Director of the agency Inside Mobile) to Multi-Channel Advertising, a webinar taking place this Wednesday at 10:00 am CET (GMT +1:00), organized by Mobixell, a provider of a comprehensive range of mobile media solutions enabling service providers to deliver mobile messaging, mobile advertising, and mobile TV. (You can register here.) The webinar dovetails well with my mobile advertising projects, including Mobile Advertising Research U.K., a research project MSG has undertaken to expertly document the state of the mobile advertising industry in the U.K., identify growth opportunities in the emerging mobile advertising marketplace, and benefit stakeholders, shareholders, and consumers worldwide. It draws upon primary research, including in-depth interviews with 15+ mobile executives, agencies, and mobile networks, including an interview this week with Freddy Friedman, Mobixell Head of Advertising. With my MSG hat on I will also request a later briefing with Mobixell (for MSG) to discuss recent news, new customers, and the role of mobile in a multi-channel advertising strategy. I've also wrapped up my contribution to a series on audio-visual presentations on mobile advertising produced by Henry Stewart Talks (HST), which will likely go live in early June. HST, a company with a 35-year tradition, provides access to world class seminars by leading thinkers and authorities from around the globe in one online resource. The company commissioned me to summarize the findings of both volumes of my extremely popular mobile advertising white paper series (sponsored by Bango): Mobile Advertising for Newbies, which provides a how-to guide to mobile advertising and analytics; and Mobile Advertising For The Masses, which examines the market opportunity for running campaigns in a mobile social networks. I am pleased to have the opportunity (as part of HST's Marketing & Management series) to educate the marketplace about mobile advertising and the pivotal role of mobile analytics.