|
13th Feburary - Just 20% of UK subscribers actually search
for content on the mobile internet, despite an industry perception
that 89% do, according to research released today, from the
Mobile Entertainment Forum and Ovum. The survey questioned
MEF members including operators, content providers and technology
enablers to gauge industry views, as well as 1,000 UK consumers.
Despite subscribers not searching on the mobile internet
as often as the industry expects (only 2% searching on a daily
basis), those that do are downloading premium material, rather
than just surfing. Amongst consumers using mobile search once
a month or more, the most commonly searched for content is
ringtones (54%), closely followed by full track music downloads
(47%). Of the top four types of content looked for ringtones,
full track downloads, sports results and games all featured.
Ringtones, music tracks and games all command a premium and
subscribers appear willing to pay for it – only 17% of
respondents were put off searching by cost. This is particularly
important with industry respondents citing ‘increased
downloads’ (50%) as the most important quantifier of
successful search mechanisms followed by return visits (31%).
Interestingly, searching for mobile content isn’t purely
limited to the 18-35 year old demographic with an average
of 64% of those aged 35-64 searching for ringtones.
It is still early days for the mobile search industry and
the primary barriers to uptake are cited by subscribers as
not knowing how to use the search engine (23%) and not thinking
about using mobile search on their phone (19%) – however,
a huge 98% know where to find the search engine. This suggests
that the industry needs to promote the benefits of mobile
search more actively as well as educating consumers on how
to use it to find relevant content.
Claudia Poepperl, Head of the MEF initiative and CMO for
MobilePeople commented:
“Effective mobile search is the lifeblood of the mobile
entertainment industry – if consumers can’t find
relevant content, they can’t use it. This research shows
how crucial it is for the industry to actively promote mobile
search to consumers to encourage further uptake of mobile
entertainment. Putting the correct mobile search business
models in place will boost download and usage rates and provide
new revenue opportunities via advertising.”
Eden Zoller, Principal Analyst, Ovum’s Consumer Practice
commented:
“It is still very early days for mobile search but the
difference highlighted in industry and consumer understanding
of mobile search is very telling. Although there have already
been many advances in mobile search technology, there is still
a long way to go in making users understand why and how they
can use it.”
Patrick Parodi, Global Chair MEF added:
“The mobile entertainment industry is now a multi-billion
pound industry but there is still much work to be done to
ensure its continuing success. MEF is calling for cross industry
cooperation on a major consumer education drive. It is vital
that we work together to carve new roads into these emerging
sectors for mobile entertainment.”
As part of its mobile search and discovery initiative, MEF
will be producing a full white paper on the research results
for circulation to MEF members.
The initiative was proposed by MobilePeople and is being
supported by FAST (Fast Search & Transfer) and Qpass (Amdocs
Digital Commerce Division). The initiative is supported by
Ovum as the external research partner.
Back to
News Reports
|
