WAP Popularity Continues To Grow Into 2005

The nation’s mobile phone users continued to break records for mobile internet use in January, with the number of WAP page impressions rising by 18% year on year to a mammoth 1.42 billion, according to the latest figures from the Mobile Data Association.

The continued year on year increase builds on last year’s record WAP usage, which saw mobile users access a massive 14.6 billion pages of information over the year to create a new record and surpass the MDA’s previous forecast of 13 billion for the year (see 2004 Beats Records For WAP Usage).

The seemingly unstoppable growth in popularity for WAP has led to the MDA revising its predictions for 2005’s total usage. October 2004 saw the industry body predict a total of 15 billion page impressions for the coming year. However, this figure is currently being revised to reflect the increased usage and should be updated by the end of the month.

The increased usage of WAP is undoubtedly due to its adoption by an increasing number of companies and content providers, tempting users with an expanding array of products and services which are increasingly available in full colour.

Tomorrow will see the BBC employ the technology as part of its Red Nose Day fundraising effort. Viewers will be invited to join in the Corporation’s Big Entertainment Test, with participants required to text a message to the BBC before being issued with a WAP PUSH message 10 minutes before the start of the show, linking them directly to the Test the Nation WAP site. Players will be able to test their knowledge of entertainment and popular culture live, comparing their results with others to determine their rating against the nation as a whole.

Mobile Data Association: 01922 419600 www.mda-mobiledata.org

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