Mobile social networking growth ahead

Subscriber numbers for mobile social networking are predicted to climb modestly over the next three to four years, after which growth will accelerate sharply, predicts ABI Research. Many social networking sites, including Facebook and MySpace, are accessible from mobile devices via which some sites already allow users to update their profile.

ABI’s “Mobile Social Networking” report forecasts that by 2013, more than 140 million mobile phone users will subscribe to “anytime, anywhere” services, generating subscription revenues of over $410 million.

"That uptick is based on assumed acceptance levels in the giant emerging markets such as Brazil, Russia, India, and China. Those countries are wildcards, very difficult to estimate, so we are quite conservative in our forecasts."

JupiterResearch concurs. "Consumption of media and information on social networks from cell phones has the potential to grow in the long term," said Julie Ask, Vice President, Research Director and Lead Analyst of JupiterResearch’s report "Mobile Social Networking: Assessing Social Strategies for Carriers and Handset Manufacturers”.

"Today the low adoption levels are really due to the nature of the device itself. There are few examples of tightly integrated social networking experiences on cell phones and PCs."

Tags: mobile marketing, mobile social network, social network