Estimates 423.65 million mobile Internet users in Asia by year-end ; 1.4 billion Asians will browse mobile Internet by 2015.
Over 1.4 billion mobile users will frequently connect to the mobile Internet by 2015, up from 423.65 million by the end of 2010, according to research from the UK -based mobile research agency Mobile Squared . From the end of 2009 to the end of 2015, the number of mobile Internet users will increase by 233%, making mobile the primary Internet access channel for brands and businesses to communicate with customers.
The continued growth of mobile powerhouses China and India will contribute over 1 billion mobile Internet users by 2015. China alone will contribute 58% of all mobile Internet users across Asia by 2015, with over 800 million users, while India will have a little over 260 million estimates Mobile Squared chief analyst Nick Lane. “These figures are astronomical compared to other markets around the world such as the UK where 38 million mobile Internet users are expected by 2015. However, when placed in context with the mobile growth both India and China are experiencing, the mobile Internet growth is in alignment with other developing nations.”
Japan – the world’s most advanced mobile Internet nation – will have a little over 100 million users.
After Asia’s “big three”, the next tier in terms of scale will come from Indonesia, the Philippines and South Korea, contributing a combined 121.77 mobile Internet users by 2015. Almost one-quarter of the global population will be using their mobile devices to access the Internet, and those users are in Asia, adds Lane. “By 2015, mobile usage will tower over PC usage across the continent and that means brands and companies must ensure they have a strong presence on mobile. If they do not have a mobile strategy in place, now is the time to change that.”
The Asian mobile Internet forecasts are an extract from Mobile Squared’s forthcoming report, “The complete guide to mobile in Asia” which will be released at the mobileSQUARED Roadshow: Asia, in Singapore, May 5-6. Confirmed speakers for the 2-day event, include:Akihisa Fujita, president & CEO, D2 Communications; Kazumi Fujita, CEO, CWS Brains; Tomi Ahonen, consultant & author; Richard Powell, business director, BBH Asia Pacific; KF Lai, CEO, Buzzcity; James Gray, sales & marketing director APAC, EA Mobile; Sanjeet Matharu, principal manager, developer marketing, Vodafone Group, Ragnar Kruse, CEO, Smaato, Monty Munford, Indian mobile connoisseur, Vince Parr, managing director, Deep Blue Asia. The full agenda can be accessed at www.mobilesquared.co.uk
Subsequent Roadshows this year are scheduled in the US (New York, June 29th), Europe (London Sept 29-30th) and South Africa (Cape Town, Dec 7th).
March 25 2010