Trend: Social Mobile Networking

Two new studies on social networking have come to the same conclusion: more mobile users are taking social networking with them, thanks to mobile capabilities.

by Kristina Knight

The studies from ABI Research and M:Metrics indicate that teens and college age adults are breaking ground by taking their social network with them.

"Much as teens were the early adopters of PC-based social networking applications, they have proven to be the innovators in the mobile arena," said Paul Goode, VP and senior analyst at M:Metrics in a prepared statement. “Although teenagers and young adults make up only 6 to 10 percent of mobile subscribers, they generate more than their fair share of mobile content."

The rapid increase of mobile social networkers does open the door for advertisers, according to some. Including click-to-call features on marketing or company blogs, coupon codes for products and other incentives could help increase revenue for companies. The mobile networking platforms can be set up to target specific age groups or other niches in the industry, according to the ABI report.

"The rapid rise of online social communities -- gathering places such as MySpace and Facebook -- has done more than bring the 'pen pal' concept into the 21st century," said ABI Research VP of Research Clint Wheelock in a statement. There are currently about 50 million social networkers worldwide. That number is expected to jump to more than 170 million by 2011.