Ground Truth: Half of All Time Spent on the Mobile Internet Is on Social Networking Sites

SEATTLE, April 21 /PRNewswire/ --The Mobile Internet may be just as reliant on social networks as it is on the mobile data network itself. Ground Truth, the mobile media measurement firm that provides precise, timely and actionable mobile intelligence, today revealed that social networking activity comprises more than half of the time spent on the Mobile Internet. Ground Truth also reported that users of mobile-specific social networks are more engaged than users of PC-based social networks, such as Facebook and MySpace, on mobile.  

"While the popularity of mobile social networking is widely believed, this is the first time we have been able to truly quantify just how much the category is driving adoption of the Mobile Internet with actual usage metrics," said Evan Neufeld, vice president of marketing, Ground Truth. "The disparity of time spent between social networking and the next category, portals, which account for 59.83 and 13.65 percent of time spent respectively, is a vivid illustration of the impact social networking has on Mobile Internet traffic in a given week."  

Because Ground Truth can accurately measure any Mobile Web site using True View™, its patent-pending, census-based methodology, the firm provides precise site-level usage metrics across several measures, including sessions per subscriber, pages per subscriber, pages per session and time per subscriber, on weekly basis.  Beyond sheer usage trends in social networking, data for the week ending April 4 indicates that mobile-centric social networking sites such as MocoSpace and AirG are better at engaging consumers than are PC heavyweights like Facebook and MySpace.

"Facebook and MySpace may be the most addictive pastimes on the PC, but sites like MocoSpace and AirG command more attention on mobile phones. For example, each MocoSpace user spent in excess of an hour more on the site than did the average Facebook visitor during the week," observed Neufeld.  "This data points to the fact that there is a whole universe of media properties advertisers need to consider that have to date been largely ignored. It also demonstrates that traditional media companies that are not focused on the Mobile Internet--both browser- and application-based usage--risk losing market share to leaner, more mobile focused companies."

Ground Truth data is from a census of 3.05 million U.S. mobile phone users, and is reported weekly.  Working in partnership with operators and other data providers, Ground Truth protects the privacy of mobile subscribers, while providing services to the operators that allow them to optimize their networks, understand their audiences and negotiate with advertisers and publishers.

About Ground Truth: Ground Truth is a mobile measurement firm that delivers the precise, timely and actionable mobile intelligence required for operators, advertisers and publishers to measure, optimize and grow their businesses.  As the sole provider of actual usage data aggregated from millions of subscribers using True View™, a patent-pending census-based methodology, Ground Truth sets the benchmark for Mobile Internet measurement.  Ground Truth is headquartered in Seattle, Washington and is venture-backed by Steamboat Ventures and Voyager Capital. For more information about the company, please visit www.groundtruth.com.

SOURCE Ground Truth