Dedicated mobile websites ruled out in the era of iPhones

We’re in an iPhone-era. The iPhone itself – and the me-to’s of Google Android, RIM Blackberry and the lot – have changed the game of mobile phones and mobile computing, creating its very own category.

This shift now begins to manifest itself in available stats:

During the past 18 month, the usage of iPhones for surfing the web has grown exponentially. Have a look at the numbers I’ve just drawn up from the official Danish web-stats: from 460.000 pages in February 08 to 3,43 million pages in August 09:

Monthly page-views conducted by devices with a screen resolution of 320 by 396 (iphones and ipod touches), all websites, from August 2007 to August 2009. Found the numbers digging and interpreting the databases of FDIM/gemiusAudience

I’ve added the exponential tendency-line. It should be pretty significant with an R-spuare of 98,29.

Interestingly enough, stats for the use of the dedicated mobile web-sites shows a decreasing trend (!)

Index (Aug. 08=100) of monthly page-views conducted by devices with a screen resolution of 320 by 396 (iPhones and iPod touches). , all websites vs. Monthly page-views on selected 19 mobile websites. Found the numbers digging and interpreting the databases of FDIM/gemiusAudience

Although the individual sites displays large variation, none of them gets close to the growth-rates of the iPhone.

Monthly page-views, top 5 mobile websites (as per August 08). Found the numbers digging and interpreting the databases of FDIM/gemiusAudience Mobil-listen

This indicates that iPhone-growth primarily happens elsewhere: iPhone-users are fans of internet-surfing – but not of surfing the mobile websites. Instead they prefer the regular stuff. Although not entirely convincing, you are actually able to navigate the full-fledged web-version on your iPhone to such an extend, most users won’t settle with the stripped-down mobile websites. (I can’t wait for mobile websites and mobile apps which are not just stripped-down websites, but build to take advantage of all the stuff possible with the new smart-phones).

Read on in my latest report: Smart-phones leading the way: The case of iPhone and dedicated mobil-sites in Denmark