New York - Of the 76% of consumers in the U.S. and Western Europe who own mobile phones with Web access, about one-third are currently using it, according to a survey conducted by the Online Publishers Association and TNS Media and Entertainment.

The U.K. leads in mobile Web usage (54%), followed by the U.S. and Italy (41%).

The survey also found that 34% of mobile Web users internationally say they will watch ads in exchange for free mobile content, and nearly one-in-ten have actually made a purchased based on a mobile Web ad.

While browsing the mobile Web, over half of consumers visit the same brands they use on their PCs, with those who surf technology news sites (73%) and stock quotes (69%) maintaining the highest loyalty between platforms.

The OPA report also indicates that more than one-in-ten mobile Web users have paid for content, including 24% of U.S. mobile surfers who said they have paid to access technology news.

"While people often think of the mobile Web as the realm of ringtones and messaging, it is clearly a rich platform for quality content and marketing," said OPA president Pam Horan.

"Mobile content consumption is high and growing -- in the year ahead, current users plan to spend more time with the mobile Web and new audiences will adopt the platform."

Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/3dkjlc

http://tinyurl.com/2vpy7m (Mediaweek)

http://www.online-publishers.org