It’s time for retrospection and resolutions, a good time to look back at the year that’s passed. At the beginning of 2010, the Mobile Marketing Association made some predictions for the year. As we look to starting a brand new mobile year, let’s see where we stand with our predictions for the past year.
Prediction: Growing up: regionally-focused growth
Result: Growth in mobile has exploded in both mobile penetration and the range of services. Mobile has also been boosted through integration with other media.
Mobile growth in the region has been exponential. In 2010, the number of mobile subscribers in China has reached an astounding 800 million and in India, mobile subscribers stand at 617.5 million. This growth is not only reflected in number but in also in the amount of services offered on mobile. This year, augmented reality has quickly become the service to look out for and this integration of virtual mobile and real is key to the future of mobile.
Prediction: Smarter than ever: mobile data use increases
Prediction: Adding on: mobile data plans as value-added services
Result: As the mobile industry evolves, data consumption continues to increase exponentially. The development and uptake of new devices also contributes to data usage.
Frost & Sullivan note that incremental data usage from smartphones will generate US$38 billion in 2010 for the 18 Asia-Pacific operators, including Japan, compared to just US$1.3 billion last year. In addition, according to network data from InMobi, there was a 230% increase in ad impressions between Dec 2009 (4,950 million) and July 2010 (11.5 billion). This will only continue to grow as more people use smartphones, or as new devices like mobile tablets become more popular.
There were several notable smart-device launches this year. Of those, the iPhone 4 and iPad have had the biggest impacts. With such devices, data consumption has continued to grow month after month, with many telcos increasing data limits. The app revolution has also ignited more consumption by increasing the channels by which consumers access data.
Prediction: All together now: more integrated mobile marketing campaigns
Result: The mobile medium is no longer seen as a separate communication channel. On the contrary, mobile is being integrated into the current marketing mix to build more holistic campaigns.
With the increase in data consumption on mobile, whether for video, music or gaming on the go, the different media are starting to bleed into each other. What this means for marketers is marketing campaigns have to be integrated in order not to lose out on a significant portion of the market. Advertising for television has to be catered to video-on-demand on mobile devices. Banner ads on websites have to be resized or reworked for mobile dimensions. In addition, the mobility of devices and services like LBS open new opportunities for integrated marketing campaigns.
Another medium that works extremely well with mobile is social media. Marketers are looking to take advantage of these social media and bring them into their current marketing plans while accounting for the benefits of mobile.
Prediction: Cash on the go: mobile payment
Result: Mobile payment will enable mobile phones to become electronic wallets which can provide relevant purchase opportunities on-the-go.
Singapore and Hong Kong are still the most mature electronic payment markets in Asia. In terms of technological innovations, like cashless transaction, Singapore has always been ahead of the curve. The electronic payment industry is constantly growing; it provides significant opportunities for electronic payment on mobile platforms. Add on to the fact that mobile penetration in Singapore has passed 140%, that’s approximately 1.4 handsets per person. People are more likely to have a mobile phone instead of an ATM card. This year, the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore announced that from December 2010, 1000 participants will be selected to test a new method of making payments through a small chip added to SIM cards. These participants will be able to make payments in places like supermarkets and pharmacies. The IDA is also expecting to make payment services available to all mobile subscribers by February 2012.
Prediction: Keeping in shape: mobile healthcare
Prediction: Give me a beat: mobile music
Prediction: Playtime isn’t over: mobile gaming
Result: Apps-based mobile computing has given a significant boost to all manner of mobile activity. Of the three listed above, mobile gaming is the most developed.
The combination of higher mobile bandwidth, better processors and higher resolution screens has ensured the continued development of the mobile gaming market, which has also helped push the mobile advertising industry which also seen huge growth over the past year. The result is an increase in revenue from in-game advertising which in turn subsidises the cost of mobile games on app stores.
With Apple leading the way, mobile gaming on iPhones and other iOS devices is challenging even console gameplay, with cutting edge games like the recently-released Infinity Blade showing off how powerful mobile devices truly are. Other companies are rushing to catch up, with the Playstation Phone rumoured to be released early 2011 by gaming analysts. But that’s not all. Apps exist for nearly any use – productivity, personal development, exercise/fitness, healthcare, entertainment, the list goes on. Even healthcare and music have their apps, and continue to develop.
Prediction: Measuring up: quantify your mobile presence
Result: Mobile is reaching a point where the effectiveness of mobile can be quantified like every other medium.
The one problem in using mobile for business was the lack of proper measurement. This is changing, and while there isn’t one single industry-wide standard, numerous research companies and mobile advertising networks have started to compile metrics and surveys to quantify mobile advertising effectiveness and mobile presence. Measures include smartphone use, OS share and click-through-rates of ads. Ad impressions play a huge part in these metrics and surveys.
Final tally – Some predictions (mobile gaming, healthcare and music) are taking a different shape than we originally imagined, and at least one (mobile payment) has just recently started to materialise. However, by and large, we have seen significant advancement in the predicted growth areas.
