Is Mobile Internet Use a Cultural Issue?
March 21st, 2007 by pamela
MediaPost have posted a great article regarding mobile search which discusses the findings of a worldwide mobile user survey conducted by the CMO Council. Questioning 15,000 users, the survey found marked differences between the way US and non-US users are interacting with the web via mobile devices.
Written by mobile aficionado Steve Smith, a longtime new-media consultant and columnist, and current editor of Digital Media Report for MinOnline.com and Mobile Media Report for TelecomWeb.com, this article suggests that mobile internet just isn’t important.
Smith argues that while may be convenient, but it isn’t important enough, particularly for US users whose car culture means that they have less time to surf while in transit. He also goes on to say that current mobile content not good enough to induce us to learn new habits, especially when you consider that alternative channels to the same information are never very far away.
It is interesting that this article comes out on one day after Yahoo! announced the launch of Yahoo! oneSearch on their Yahoo! Mobile Web Service. It’s a fantastic product, delivering easy to read and use results and could help to bring mobile search to a wider audience. But, if the market for it changes from country to country due to cultural differences, can we reasonably expect that it will truly take off?
Only time will tell, but I’d be interested to hear your thoughts.
Posted in Yahoo!, Mobile Search |
