Mobile Search: The New Frontier
Recent figures released by The Kelsey Group expect U.S. mobile search revenues to reach $1.4 billion by 2012. In 2007 this figure was $33.2 million, and 2008 is expected to see a figure of around $102.3 million.
This huge growth depends upon whether or not a solid and widely accepted mobile search interface can be found. Google did this for Internet search with its stripped down, simplistic interface, but so far there has not been a clear standard in mobile search.
Clearly, a mobile search interface requires drastically different conveniences than a traditional Web search interface. Click-to-call, and possibly voice-activated options figure to be key in this.
A big question is whether or not mobile search users would be fine with having their mobile search experiences supported by ads or not. This has become a no-brainer for traditional online search, but there is nothing solidified in mobile search.
International Data Corporation (IDC) conducted a survey in Spain, the U.K., and the U.S. to see how adult consumers felt about having their location-based mobile search available at a price or for free, with the help of ads.
Spain was the most willing to pay for their search services, while avoiding the sight of ads in their mobile search experience, with 51% indicating so. Consumers in the U.S. were also receptive to this idea, with 49% supporting this notion. Consumers in the U.K., however, were least open to this idea, with only 38% saying they would take this option.
At the very least, this means about half of consumers in the U.S. would be open game for advertisers who are able to take a leadership position in mobile search.
Sources:
http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2008/01/14/
mobile-search-advertising-to-reach-14-billion
http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?id=1005763
