Mobile Internet users across the UK and the US want flat-rate data packages to be more readily available, and cite that as the one factor most likely to increase the time they spend on the mobile web. 49% of mobile users across both regions saying they would be more likely to sign-up to such packages if operators did more to make them easier to sign up to. This is one of the key findings of the Mobile Internet Attitudes Report 2010, commissioned by Volantis, and carried out by YouGov, who questioned 4,324 consumers aged 18+ online in the UK and the US in February.
Despite the fact that operators offer an increasing array of services and applications for the mobile Internet, the report reveals that there are still a high number of mobile users with Internet-ready phones who are not motivated to go online via their handset. In the UK, 33% respondents said that they dont use the Internet, despite having access on their phone, while 25% of American respondents with an Internet-ready phone are still not logging on. Although concerted efforts by operators to push high-end Smartphones to their subscribers have been successful in increasing the take-up of these devices, more needs to be done to encourage and educate consumers to use their mobiles to their full capability, says Volantis.
The report also revealed that mobile phone users across the UK and the US would be keen to have websites and services optimized for their specific mobile device, if it means that they could access the services they want more quickly. 32% of those asked in both regions said it would get them using the mobile Internet more often. In turn, 51% of all respondents said they were only prepared to spend up to three minutes surfing for a specific piece of content on their phones, suggesting that if websites and content were better optimized and easier to locate across a wider range of handsets, they would be more likely to have a positive mobile internet experience.
Results from the report also highlighted one of the major issues currently facing operators as more subscribers access the mobile web on a regular basis: how to balance the roll-out of new services across their networks to remain competitive. Of those asked, more than 13% of UK mobile Internet users and 17% of US users are now accessing the mobile Internet more than once a day from their phones. In total, 27% of UK consumers and 28% of Americans surveyed said they now use the mobile Internet at least once a week, if not more. These results suggest that mass mobile Internet adoption is now approaching a tipping point, says Volantis. As usage continues to grow in 2010, operators will need to effectively manage the strain on their networks from a combination of an increase in users and a greater adoption of high-bandwidth services such as video and audio streaming.
When asked what they found to be the most frustrating part of their mobile internet experience, the research found that only 5% are completely satisfied with their current mobile Internet service. 32% of UK users and 23% of Americans said that network speed remains the biggest barrier to them using the mobile web on a more regular basis.
Operators must do more to open up compelling application and mobile Internet services to subscribers of all mobile devices, and make flat-rate data packages far more easily available, says Volantis CEO, Mark Watson. By opening up mobile data services and optimizing the end-user experience, operators can create a new body of mobile Internet consumers, and proactively increase the data revenues required to support the required network and development effort.
Many of the less-advanced devices will also prove less of a strain on networks compared to the Smartphone devices, so that on mid-tier handsets especially operators will see a higher average profit margin per user, and a greater individual contribution to data revenues.