The Mobile Internet Attitudes Report 2010, released by Volantis, found that a large percentage of mobile users with internet-ready phones are not using their phones to go online: as many as 33% in the UK and 25% in the USA. These same users, the study found, would be more likely to spend time on the mobile web if operators made it easier to find and sign up for flat-rate data packages.
The survey also found that 32% of users would use the mobile web more often if they could access the services they want more quickly. 51% said they were prepared to spend no more than three minutes surfing for specific content. The results suggest that if websites were better optimized for specific handsets, they would be more popular with mobile users.
Only 5% of users reported that they were completely satisfied with their mobile network service, with large numbers citing network speed as the biggest barrier to frequent mobile web use. As more users access the web via their phones, and more gravitate to high-bandwidth services such as video and audio, networks are under pressure to keep up with the demand and stay competitive.
According to Mark Watson, CEO of Volantis, “Operators must do more to open up compelling application and mobile internet services to subscribers of all mobile devices, and make flat-rate data packages far more easily available. By opening up mobile data services and optimizing the end-user experience, operators can create a new body of mobile internet consumers, and proactively increase the data revenues required to support the required network and development effort. Many of the less-advanced devices will also prove less of a strain on networks compared to the smartphone devices, so that – on mid-tier handsets especially – operators will see a higher average profit margin per user, and a greater individual contribution to data revenues.”
