Social networking has already made its mark on the traditional, PC-based Web. MySpace, Facebook, and Bebo have taken leadership positions in global markets and there is little reason to believe that the landscape will change anytime soon. What will likely transform, however, is the frequency that social networking users access their social networks with their mobile phones.
Nielsen Mobile took a glimpse recently at the mobile social networking view in the U.K. About 44% of mobile phone subscribers in the U.K. are members of an online social network, and 25% of the individuals in this group carry out some of their social networking activities with their mobile phones.
During the first quarter of 2008, 1.7% of all mobile subscribers in the U.K. (or approximately 812,000) used their mobile phones to visit their social networking sites. Facebook was found to be the most popular social networking site on mobile devices, with an audience of 9% of all mobile Internet subscribers in the U.K., or 557,000.
MySpace was the second most accessed social network site on mobile phones, drawing 211,000 mobile subscribers in the U.K., or 3.4% of the total. Bebo was third, attracting 162,000 mobile subscribers, or 2.6% of the total audience. Windows Live Spaces was fourth, drawing 109,000 mobile subscribers, or 1.8% of the total audience.
Flixster (1.5%), Friends Reunited (1.2%), WAYN (1.0%), Yahoo! Groups (1.0%), Faceparty (0.8%), and BBC Communities (0.8%) rounded out the top 10 list.
In the U.K., Facebook holds the top spot when it comes to being the most popular social network on PCs as well. During the first quarter of 2008, 8.9 million Britons visited Facebook on their PCs each month, giving it a reach of 27.5%. MySpace was second with 5.2 million unique PC visitors and a reach of 16.0%. Bebo was third with 4.5 million unique PC visitors and a reach of 13.9%.
Sending and reading messages and mail were the most popular social networking-related activities for mobile users in the U.K. Viewing pictures was third, while uploading pictures was fourth. Adding friends, receiving text alerts, viewing profiles, creating or updating profiles, uploading videos, and participating in chat rooms rounded out the top 10 list of most popular activities.
As mobile Web speeds increase, and as mobile Internet experiences get smoother, mobile social networking activities will be an area for huge growth potential.
Stateside, MySpace still held onto its throne atop the social networking mountain, according to Hitwise. MySpace had a market share of 73.82% in April 2008, an improvement from March’s 73.59%, but a noticeable decline from last April’s 77.87% share.
Facebook was second in line, continuing its steady ascent. In April, Facebook grabbed a 14.80% market share, reflecting an increase from March’s 14.70%, and a rise from last April’s 11.21% market share. This shows a year-over-year growth of 32%.
myYearbook (1.33%), Bebo (1.09%), and BlackPlanet (0.98%) rounded out the top five social networks in the U.S. myYearbook saw its market share increase 475% year-over-year.
Sources:
http://www.nielsen-netratings.com/pr/pr_080512_UK.pdf
http://hitwise.com/press-center/hitwiseHS2004/
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