Survey: Mobile now more popular than TV

Singapore consumers are increasingly turning to their mobile devices as the primary gateway to the Internet and key influencer of their purchasing decisions, with 47 percent turning to their handsets--compared to 34 percent for television--before buying a product.

According to a new survey released Wednesday by InMobi, 50 percent of Singapore respondents viewed mobile as their primary or exclusive means of accessing the Web. Some 44 percent had been introduced to something new via mobile advertising, while 27 percent were provided with better options via this platform. Some 29 percent said they found relevant products and services nearby using their mobile, while 10 percent reconsidered a product thanks to their mobile.

Some 71 percent of Singapore consumers were comfortable with mobile advertising as they were with TV or online advertising, the survey revealed. Globally, this figure stood at 66 percent.

Phalgun Raju, InMobi's regional director and general manager for Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan, said in the statement that entertainment, e-mail and social media likely will be the key growth drivers for mobile use in Singapore.

Some 54 percent said they expected their social media activities to increase the most this year, while 40 percent pointed to e-mail and 32 percent highlighted entertainment.

Over half, at 52 percent, had transacted via their mobile devices and this number was expected to further increase as 70 percent said they planned to perform mobile-commerce (m-commerce) activities this year. Of those that had transacted on mobile, 44 percent bought digital goods such as games, e-books, music and apps, while 35 percent purchased physical goods including electronics and clothes.

Phalgun added that apps were increasingly an important source of content, with 47 percent of respondents in the country pointing to mobile apps as their favorite mode of receiving content.

"What is interesting to note is that increased mobile Web usage is adding to the total daily media consumption and growing the pie" Phalgun said. "This is largely due to the always-on, always-available nature of the mobile medium allowing consumers to stay online, connected and informed on-the-go."

"There is an opportunity for advertisers to leverage this quality of the medium to significantly increase the impact of their existing advertising efforts."

Conducted between September and November last year, the survey polled over 20,000 mobile users in 18 markets worldwide, including 1,042 in Singapore, according to InMobi, which is a mobile advertising network.

Growing mobile gogglebox
Worldwide, the survey revealed that 27 percent of respondents spent their media time on a mobile device, compared 22 percent on TV. They cited social media, entertainment and search as main activities conducted on mobile, and InMobi said these were expected to grow in the next 12 months.

Some 53 percent had made purchases via their mobile, while another 76 percent planned to carry out m-commerce activities this year.

The survey also found that 42 percent were introduced to new products and services via mobile ads, while 14 percent revealed that such advertising had influenced them to buy via their devices. Another 23 percent said mobile ads saved time and money.

InMobi CEO Naveen Tewari added: "Mobile devices are redefining the media landscape across the world... While the opportunities to exploit mobile media remain strong, the stakeholders across the industry will be confronted with ongoing questions and challenges which need to be addressed in order to meet the growing expectations of the customer."