MMA Study Shows American Consumers Continue to Adopt New Phone Features & Are Increasingly Interested in Mobile Marketing

African American and English-Dominant Hispanics Continue to Represent Strong Prospects for Mobile Marketing


New York – November 17, 2008—The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) (www.mmaglobal.com) today released the results of its Annual Global Mobile Attitude and Usage Study, conducted with research partner Synovate. The report spans selected markets in four geographic regions including United States, Europe, Asia Pacific and Latin America, and helps brands and advertisers understand the global habits of mobile users and their overall receptiveness to mobile marketing.

The study’s key findings for the United States include:

  • Mobile phone usage is fully integrated into Americans’ day to day lives and transcends traditional voice uses.
    • Three-quarters report some level of mobile phone usage and roughly half feel mobile phones are highly important to daily life.
    • Use of text messaging and mobile web services (80% & 20% overall) indicates consumers’ willingness to consider their mobile devices as more than traveling telephones.
  • Mobile web usage has increased for the third year in a row. One-in-five reports using mobile web services and usage is highest among 18-24 year olds (37% report using mobile web to some degree).
    • The most common mobile web activities are browsing the internet, mobile search and visiting weather and news sites.
  • Interest in mobile marketing is similar to that noted in 2007; roughly one-quarter overall are interested in the concept and are somewhat/very likely to opt-in to mobile marketing opportunities.
    • Mobile couponing presents the best opportunity for mobile marketers. Additionally consumers express moderate interest in ringtone, wallpaper & game downloads and receiving information about new products and services.
  • African Americans and English-dominant Hispanics represent a strong base of mobile usage. Compared to Caucasians, consumers in these segments report heavier mobile usage for both voice and text messaging functions.


“Continued increases in text messaging behaviors pave the way for mobile messaging and marketing.” said Beth Ritchey, Vice President, Synovate Tech and Telecom. “Creating strong opportunities for mobile marketers, the pervasiveness of mobile phones in Americans’ daily lives suggests that marketing applications are a natural extension of consumers’ ever-increasing reliance on mobile devices.”

“This is the fourth year that we have conducted our Annual Attitude & Usage study in the United States and we continue to see an uplift in overall consumer adoption of phone features and services – creating a ripe opportunity for marketers to leverage the mobile channel for marketing purposes,” said Laura Marriott, president of the MMA. “The study provides an important foundation for our member companies as they assess what areas to focus on in 2009 and beyond. We are pleased to provide benefits, such as the A&U study, to our membership.”

The study is available immediately, free of charge, to all current MMA Global and Regional members and available at a discount for Local Council members. The market studies will also be available, for sale, after December 1. For more information, visit www.mmaglobal.com

The 2008 US study consisted of 1,405 online interviews using a nationally representative consumer online panel of over 1.5 million households. The sampling plan for the main study sample was identical to the 2005 and 2006 survey waves, in order to ensure maximum compatibility between studies and allow for accurate trending. In addition to the main study sample, the 2006 and 2007 surveys included a booster sample of African-American and Hispanic interviews (18+ years of age).

About the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA)
The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) is the premier global non-profit trade association established to lead the growth of mobile marketing and its associated technologies. The MMA is an action-oriented organization designed to clear obstacles to market development, establish mobile media guidelines and best practices for sustainable growth, and evangelize the use of the mobile channel. The more than 700 member companies, representing over forty countries around the globe, include all members of the mobile media ecosystem. The Mobile Marketing Association’s global headquarters are located in the United States and it has regional chapters including North America (NA), Europe (EUR), Latin America (LATAM), Middle East & Africa (MEA) and Asia Pacific (APAC) branches. For more information, please visit www.mmaglobal.com.