MobileWebsiteWatch

Gotta have that new smartphone!!!

In a recent study by ChangeWave Research, it was revealed that despite the economic downturn that has hurt companies both large and small, consumers remain bullish on smartphone purchases. Of those polled, 12% reported planning to buy a new smartphone as soon as 90 days!

The data continues the string of reports suggesting that the market for high-end mobile phones — which typically offer Internet access, music, video and application features — continues growing despite the economic climate. IDC reported similar findings in April, while Gartner saw continued strength in the market last month.

With many of the newest smartphones that users are eager to shell out big bucks for, such and the iPhone and Blackberry Storm, an unlimited mobile web data plan is REQUIRED for service on the device. That translates to no stopping in the increasing demand growth for mobile optimized web content for those hungry little babys!

In case there is still any question about whether or not the mobile internet is a “trend” new research released last week shows that sales of smartphones int he US are growing at 40% year over year while the rest of the market is at about 10%. When this is coupled with the fact that revenue from data plans is surging among carriers, it is clear that in the future (the very very near future, in fact), mobile web browsing will be as common as cellphone calls are today. Companies who take advantage of this today will reap the benefit of taking the time to be the go-to site for their niche on mobile before their competition can get in the game. This is much in the same way that Netscape beat Microsoft into the portal game in the 90’s.

Despite the slowing ecomomy: the paper points out that mobile phone sales grew 15% this year:

Despite a slowing economy, the global mobile phone market had solid double-digit growth in the second quarter, according to new data from IDC.

The report, “IDC Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker,” said vendors shipped a total of 306 million units, a 15% increase from the same period a year earlier.

Since the start of the year, vendors have been wary of the potential decrease in demand for mobile phones,” said Ramon Llames, a senior research analyst at IDC, in a statement. “That has not stopped vendors from experimenting with and releasing a host of mid-range and high-end devices with GPS, touchscreen, and multimedia. This also goes for hotly contested emerging markets, where vendors are introducing phones that offer features in addition to voice telephony.”The report also said that smartphones are seeing growth rates near 40% year-over-year, while the rest of the industry is growing at roughly 10%. But the line between a smartphone and a feature phone is quickly blurring, and the research firm expects to see more mid-range handsets with higher-end capabilities.