Tablets have emerged as ‘fourth screen' leading the change in ways that consumers access information, says a comScore report

Mobile devices — smartphones and tablets — that had a windfall sales year in 2011 are shaping an online landscape in which consumption patterns are rapidly changing, according to research agency comScore's report, ‘2012-Mobile Future in Focus,' which was released on February 23.

Based on mobile markets, primarily the U.S., the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Japan and Canada, the report lays out a road map for trends likely this year. Central to the theme is the spike in the use of mobile devices — smartphones and tablets — as a gateway to access the web.

The trend is most visible in Singapore, where it is estimated that mobile devices account for nearly 11.5 per cent of the web traffic.

The U.K. and the U.S. come second and third at 9.5 and 8.2 per cent. India figures eighth in the list, with 5.1 per cent of the web traffic through mobile devices. With nearly 100 million internet users, in terms of actual numbers, India should rank as one of the biggest markets in terms of potential.

Health apps popular

Health ranks as one of the key segments of interest for smart mobile device users. In the U.S. as well as key European segments, access to the web through Apps gained parity with access through mobile web browsers, the report notes. Health Apps is the fastest-growing mobile Apps category, followed by retail and other e-commerce applications.

Conversely, other classical web applications like the web mail and weather services are seeing a lack of interest.

Access to news

The report lays stress on news consumption in markets where newspaper circulation is being challenged by online consumption. (In India, the scenario is different as of now.) It points to a change in the consumer pattern on the devices the readers used to access news through the course of the day. The use of smartphones and tablets peaked through the course of the day, whereas access to news through the traditional desktop computer seems to be on the wane. This could be one of the opportunities for publishers to look at this year.

New category of consumers

Defining a new category of consumers — “digital omnivores” who engage online through multiple touch points through the day — the report has predicted that 2012 could well be the year of a pitched battle among mobile operating systems (OS). Consumers in the U.S. and Europe reckon that network connectivity and strengths of the mobile operating system are key considerations before buying a smartphone.

The main contenders are Google's Android and Apple's iOS, but the report notes that Research In Motion's BlackBerry OS, which is making a comeback of sorts, and Microsoft's Windows Mobile, which is trying to reach out with the Metro interface that integrates the desktop and the mobile experience, could set things up this year.

Share