|
MDA UK mobile phone usage survey 2008
30/07/08
The Mobile
Data Association (MDA), a non profit UK association for vendors and
users of mobile data and their advisors, has announced its latest
quarterly data report on mobile phone usage across UK.
The report
covers activity from January - May 2008 for Text Messaging (SMS),
Mobile Internet (MI) and Picture and Video Messaging (MMS) and
identifies new trends in the way people are increasingly relying on
their mobile phones.
General trends:
All three measured metrics continue to grow; SMS has again surpassed
expectations with 1.4 billion text messages being sent in the UK
every week. SMS has established itself as a true social connecting
tool and continues to have mass consumer appeal, at the same time
there are signs of SMS being applied in commercial applications
which will see the volume continue to rise.
Mobile Internet has seen steady growth in the UK; 16.5 million
people accessed the mobile internet in May 2008. This represents a
25 per cent growth since May 2006, indicating an average 4,500 new
users every day.
Picture and video messaging (MMS) is showing excellent and sustained
growth, with volumes rising steadily supported by some interesting
seasonal peaks. 10 million picture messages are sent every week in
the UK and year-on-year growth is at 30 per cent.
The growth can be attributed to a number of factors such as; the
increased number of mobile devices with picture and video messaging
capabilities and the emphasis placed on ease of sharing images via
the mobile networks.
Seasonal highs include December when new devices are purchased; this
resulted in a massive 52 per cent increase or an extra 19 million
messages in December 2007 alone. Other seasonal trends which will be
monitored this year, following spikes last year, is the use of
picture and video messages sent while on holiday, the ‘Wish you were
here’ effect. Will this spark the end of the traditional postcard?
The MDA will be assessing the figures during July and August this
year and will report on them later in the year. (October 2008)
What does the future look like?
The outlook for mobile data usage remains very positive. The moves
by mobile operators to offer all inclusive tariffs will stimulate
further growth and with predicted lower roaming charges, this will
also drive usage. The MDA expects to see SMS growth of around 30% in
2008.
New operator pricing combined with new function-rich, internet
enabled devices such as the iPhone and Nokia N95, are key to driving
adoption of mobile internet access. There are powerful signs all
around that mobile internet access will supersede traditional PC
access; a recent US study indicated that iPhone owners were
responsible for 1 in 1,000 web page views last month. The MDA
predicts that mobile internet will become a true rival for
traditional desktop internet access, with growth of around 20% being
seen in 2009.
In our next report in October 2008, the MDA will report on the rapid
growth of mobile data usage driven by ‘dongles’, the 3G GPRS devices
used to connect laptops to the internet via the mobile networks.
Assessing the findings of the MDA’s Q2 report, Rob Bamforth,
Principal Analyst at Quocirca, said: “It is well understood and been
demonstrated in recent years that the mobile phone has become one of
the three most important items people carry – along with keys and a
wallet or purse – when heading outside. For business or personal
use, it is no longer simply a mobile equivalent of the fixed phone,
but a pocketable tool for remote control and connection across
several modes of communication.
The access and sharing of snippets of information while on the move
has become part of working and personal lives. It started with
voice, then expanded to text – which as MDA figures have
consistently demonstrated has grown astronomically over time – and
now most recently has grown into richer messaging media and mobile
access to the internet. While these are still in their early stages,
with some aspects of the technology still evolving, adoption looks
set to follow similar paths to other communication and media
formats.”
Q2 2008 Statistical findings
The MDA reports are unique as they report historical user data, not
estimates or predictions, the figures are aggregated from all UK
mobile operators.
The report highlights three key areas of mobile data usage:
1. Text messaging (SMS)
2. Picture and Video messaging (MMS)
3. Mobile Internet (MI)
Text Messaging (SMS)
Number of person to person text messages sent in the UK:
Per month 6,467,070,000
Per week 1,492,400,769
Per day 212,616,000
Key facts:
25% Growth Quarter on Quarter (Q4 2007-Q2 2008)
30% Growth Year on Year (May 2007 to May 2008)
The growth of text messaging continues to defy expectation. The
growth curve is set to continue as new devices promote messaging
applications at the centre of their functionality. 1.4 billion text
messages are now sent every week in the UK alone.
Steve Reynolds, Chairman of the Mobile Data Association comments:
“Text messaging has been without question one of the great success
stories of the mobile age both for the industry and consumer. With
announcements this month around reduced cost of sending and
receiving text messages abroad, this type of mobile operator action
will only act to stimulate further growth. In 2008 we are
increasingly seeing other applications come into focus for business
and consumer use. Mobile e-mail and instant messaging represent new
communication mediums but mobile operators need to simplify set-up
and access to encourage adoption.”
Picture and Video messaging (MMS) person to person MMS sent in UK:
Per month - 46,516,405 (During May 2008)
Per week - 10,734,555
Per day - 1,529,306
Key facts:
MMS has seen a 30% year on year growth
10 million picture messages sent every week in the UK
Steve Reynolds, Chairman of the Mobile Data Association comments:
“Picture and video messaging volumes are gathering real pace. The
proliferation of camera enabled devices has been key, but improved
and automated settings around MMS set up have made the process
simpler for the end user. The mobile phone now goes with us all
everywhere; the seasonal trend of sending holiday messages is
testament to that.”
Mobile Internet (MI)
Figures relate to number of unique visitors accessing the Internet
from their mobile phone during the stated period:
Number of Mobile Internet users
May 2006 - 13,140,000.00
May 2008 - 16,425,000.00
Average number of new users per month 136,875 (May 06 and May 08)
Per week - 31,587
Per day - 4,500
Key facts:
Mobile Internet usage has grown 25% in the past two years.
Steve Reynolds, Chairman of the Mobile Data Association comments:
“There remain a number of challenges that mobile operators need to
address to accelerate the growth of Mobile Internet. The MDA is
calling for greater price transparency on the costs associated with
using the Mobile Internet. The findings of this report suggest a
real consumer appetite, but confusion and fear over costs may be
holding back growth.
Nick Gibson, editor
|
