Mobile takes the lead in unifying user data

Thu, 4 Feb 2010 | By Alex Farber

Operator trade body the GSMA’s Mobile Media Metrics (MMM), to be announced later today to agencies and publishers, will reveal comprehensive figures about all subscribers’ mobile internet browsing habits.

Early stats will cover top sites, page impressions and time spent browsing, but will be quickly beefed up with additions such as apps and search.   

It’s a vital step for a medium rapidly trying to prove itself as it vies for spend with other channels and grow beyond the £28.9m spent on mobile in 2008, according to the IAB.

The online industry continues to throw up contrasting data, whether it’s sourced from ComScore, Nielsen or publishers directly. This creates issues of data reliability that may continue even after online measurement scheme UKOM is launched, as for some panel-based data remains fundamentally flawed. ComScore has indeed proposed an alternative hybrid approach.

MMM provides a common currency rooted in user log data and will be the only measurement currency used by all mobile operators, which sets it apart from what any other media has achieved. Of course, this is easier as there are a far smaller number of stakeholders – the operators – compared to the fixed internet.

But it’s an example of mobile leveraging one of its unique selling points, in this case the fact that all traffic must pass through the five operators’ gateways.

As I’ve said before, this is how mobile must look to succeed against rival marketing channels, by using location-based services, augmented reality, vouchers and the like.

While MMM isn’t likely to result in a sudden influx of spend, crucially the data will allow savvy planners and buyers to maximise their returns on campaigns and add some much-needed trust to the emerging channel.

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