These are the types of things that keep us excited about mobile....

Mobile Web Usage Infographic

Yahoo published the below infographic last week.  It would be interesting to see an unbiased study like the below compared to Native App usage and what the breakdown is there.   It would also be telling to combine users time spent on Apps & the Mobile Web to get a true representation of how much time is being   spent on the mobile device...

Push vs. Text

I have been holding on to this article: Confessions of a Push Notification Convert | ClickZ  for the past few weeks as I thought about the potential of text messaging slowly being taken over by push notifications in the coming years.  The above article has a great list of reasons why Push Notifications are currently important to Marketers :

• Rich media-friendly, unlike email. You can send video, audio, forms, and maps.
• Lower cost and better tracking than SMS.
• No cost to the customer for rich media, unlike MMS.
• It's not regulated by the FCC or the FTC because it is entirely permission based.
• Can target to events and times when most users use your app.
• Can notify users when a message is waiting, creating an in-app inbox.
• Can incorporate users' location to deliver relevant content.
• Marketer-friendly interface for campaign setup, send, and reporting. Little IT support is needed.

 

I held on to the link for this article because I thought it was worth mentioning that Push Notifications could very well become the new text message. With the emergence of smartphones and the cost of utilizing Push vs. a text campaign (of course, you have to have an app, a base of users etc.), the lane is open for Push Notifications to become a Marketer's prime means of communicating to customers, fans, followers etc. As smartphone penetration hits the masses, the messaging system becomes easier to adopt and, at some point, text may be ignored in favor of hitting the majority of the audience through Push- especially given the cost. While, at this time, Push Notifications do not support the two-way messaging aspect of text, directing the "Pushee" to respond on a Mobile Optimized site or some other method could be just as effective. I have a feeling that the tipping point is coming- many brands are willing to optimize a mobile site for the iPhone only or create an App only for iOS so it will be an easy choice for them to ignore their non-smartphone audience and commit to messaging them only through Push Notifications.

It makes you wonder if we should target these users at their peak times or if that would be seen as an intrusion? Mobile is a device used by people while on the go so they may not be as open to be marketed to while they are doing other things.  Maybe at Mobile, we need to look at the off-peak times knowing they may be more likely to engage with messaging when they ae not on the go doing other tasks with their phone?

Should Rovio start doing Upfronts for Angry Birds on Android?

Inside Mobile Apps has this great article on how Rovio is now generating about the same revenue on Android as they are on iOS with the Angry Birds game.   The author lists the following insights to this telling fact:

1. We’re comparing a platform with primarily one-off revenue to a platform with continuous revenue. On iOS, Angry Birds monetizes mostly through paid downloads. Now that the app has seen about 100 million installs across all platforms, Rovio is not getting the same initial bump in paid download revenue from Apple’s app store. On Android, the company doesn’t offer paid Angry Birds apps, but sees recurring revenue from advertising.

2. Android’s pool of apps is smaller and less competitive with only 150,000 apps to Apple’s 350,000. In fact, Angry Birds advertising inventory is so large that it equals AdMob’s inventory from 2 1/2 years ago. It’s so enormous that other AdMob-dependent developers have told us that it’s hard for them to fill their inventory because Rovio’s titles absorb so much.

3. The sheer number of users is starting to work in Android’s favor. Android recently overtook Blackberry-maker RIM as the leading smartphone platform in the U.S. in January, according to Comscore.

While there aren't many developers/brands who have realized the success that Rovi has with Angry Birds, there is a lot to learn from watching their platform/monetization strategy.   In particular, their strategy with Android in utilizing the Freemium model to generate revenue at a level comparable to the iOS platform is impressive.    In relation to Inside Mobile Apps points above, it is also worth noting the following:

1.  Rovio has accomplished their success on Android through Advertising.  It will be interesting to see where they go with virtual goods on the platform and what the revenue pie chart will look like a year from now.

2.  The Angry Birds game is already attracting large brands as advertisers (Bing, Best Buy etc.).   There is room for some major creativity to go into campaigns and having a network that large should provide a good sandbox to play and experiment in with new ad units and ideas.

3.  This may be comparing apples to oranges but it can't be out of the question  (especially given where mindshare is these days) to think the Android user base could soon be viewed as a rival to a major TV network.  If that is the case, Angry Birds would be a top-rated Primetime show.  10 years ago, advertisers would have considered a spot on the tv show Friends as the perfect way to launch a major campaign.   This year, the way to go may be a interstitial video when Rovio launches the next level in Angry Birds Seasons.

 

Google Mobile Stats Graphic

via lh6.googleusercontent.com

I am sure these stats are changing daily but a great graphic to present to folks to make them understand how mobile is making a great impact on consumer behavior.