Comscore's latest report on media consumption in the United States shows mobile devices passing a notable milestone... more digital media is viewed on mobile platforms than desk-bound platforms. Countless start-ups will rejoice, these numbers will be found in every VC pitch for the next few months as evidence of growth potential, carriers will watch more data being paid for, handset manufacturers will push the vivid screens and audio capabilities of the new devices... all to give the general air that the future is here, it's mobile, and this is where you need to be.
Part of this is down to the explosive growth of smartphones and faster access to data on a handset. When the typical household has more smartphones than desk bound computers, plus a few tablets, of course the numbers will skew to mobile.
The Apple iPad Range (image: Apple.com)
Even with the majority of media going to mobile, there is still a huge market using desktop computers, laptops, and more traditional computing services to access media. It is right that this brave new mobile world should be exploited, but there's still a huge market on non-mobile devices to address.
No matter the Cassandras out there, no old media business has been 'destroyed' by a new technology suddenly appearing. The older variants evolved to take account of the new service. Music hall, cabaret, and variety shows were not killed by the advent of radio; radio was not killed by cinema; television did not kill cinema; VHS did not kill cinema; and home taping clearly did not kill music.
What is clear is that the successful companies changed with the times. The business owners who wanted to stay in music hall, in radio, and the older disciplines did so, but appreciated the changing landscape. Not all of them shut up shop and switched to the shiny new toys.
I hope that today's digital media companies keep that in mind. While there is a race to mobile, there are still significant opportunities on the existing platforms. The focus does not need to be exclusively on transitioning users from the old to the new, it should also include tweaking the old to continue to be a solid revenue stream alongside the new.
By all means have that mobile version, the optimised smaller screen experience, and smart use of streaming and caching. But with the same levels of innovation, the desktop users will continue to consume their media for many years to come. the smart money will continue to evolve the best practices for the desktop alongside the sexier, cutting-edge rush, to mobile.
