MySpace.com, one of the most visited social-networking websites on the Internet, recently announced that users can now watch videos on some mobile phones. The list includes the BlackBerry Bold, Palm Centro, Motorola Q, LG Voyager, Nokia N95 and the Samsung Instinct.

However, not on the list is the Apple iPhone, the top selling phone in the United States. MySpace analyzed industry research and its own mobile website traffic analytics before making this decision. According to a statement released by MySpace, the website decided to use the most popular video-streaming technology instead of the one supported by the iPhone.

Due to the popularity of the iPhone, one would imagine that   MySpace will eventually make its video compatible with the iPhone, but that may not be the case. Some businesses, such as the social music network Imeem, adopted technology compatible with the new Google G1 Phone instead of the iPhone. Imeem believes that its target audience, the younger generation, is the same of that of the G1. Imeem also thinks that Google’s mobile platform, Android, has a higher potential for growth then the iPhone.

The iPhone and its app store is currently the industry leader, but it will be interesting to see if Google and Android will eventually take the top spot.

The mobile gaming industry is on the rise and technology experts have taken notice. According to a recent study by Gartner Dataquest, mobile games will generate about $4.5 billion worldwide in 2008. This amount is expected to steadily increase during the next few years to the point where in 2011, mobile gaming revenue will be approximately $6.3 billion.

Mobile gaming revenue is increasing worldwide, especially in North America. Screen Digest predicts that in 2009 North America will become the biggest mobile gaming marketing, surpassing the Asia-Pacific region. The chart below shows Screen Digest’s predictions for the Mobile Gaming Industry from 2007-2012.

According to Screen Digest, a large part of the rise in mobile gaming can be attributed to the iPhone. The usability of the iPhone makes it easier to play these games. At the same time, other mobile phone carriers are imitating the iPhone and the phones they are producing make it easier for the user to play these mobile games, as well.

In 2007 over 82 million people worldwide used mobile devices to participate in a social network and according to predictions by eMarketer, that number is expected to steadily increase to 800 million people by 2012. The rapidly growing audience is just one reason why mobile social networking is attractive to interactive marketers. Additionally, it "creates a unique context in which to promote their goods and services" and is a platform for sharing those messages among friends and colleagues.

Almost 85% of marketers surveyed by a Forrester Research report, believe that the overall effectiveness of mobile marketing will improve during the next three years. Their beliefs are supported by the fact that there is an increasing dependence on mobile devices among consumers. Of those same marketers who were surveyed, 20% said they can’t live without their mobile device.

However, marketers need to be careful of the "annoyance factor" when utilizing mobile advertising. According to the same Forrester report, 55% of people surveyed find ads that appear while web pages are loading to their mobile device are annoying, 57% said that ads that appear next to maps are annoying and 56% said that all banner ads are annoying. So what is the least annoying type of advertisment? According to the survey, the answer is that video pre-roll ads are found to be the least annoying form of mobile advertising.

The numbers of consumers who are using their mobile phones to access social networks continues to steadily increase. So much so, that a recent study conducted by Pyramid Research, titled "Social Networking Goes Mobile" predicts that by 2010 300 million (7%) of mobile phone users will use their phones to access social networks. By 2012 this number is expected to increase to 950 million (18%) users. Hello, a mobile carrier was one of the first to position itself with a social network (MySpace) and other carriers such as AT&T have followed the lead.

Additionally, the number of teens in the United States who use social networks will also continue to rise according to predictions by eMarketer. As seen in the chart below during the next year the number of users is expected to increase by 1.7 million. Based on these predictions, John du Pre Gauntt a senior analyst at eMarketer, said "this suggests to marketers that the consumer demand is necessary but not sufficient to make mobile social networks a must-buy in 2008."