Blog

2013 was a bumper year for mobile. Central to the industry’s worldwide growth was mobile data consumption, driven by consumers’ ongoing love of all things app related. And, not only did the US market share for mobile apps increase 81% according to Distimo, revenue from app development rose alongside it.

But that was then, and this is now. What we really want to know is what’s in store for mobile throughout 2014. Will mobile payments capture users’ imaginations in a big way? Or perhaps it will be the year cloud-based data storage goes large. And don’t even get us started on the buzz surrounding tablet advertising.

As luck would have it, Chetan Sharma Consulting has identified a number of leading trends based on its Mobile Predictions Annual Survey.

Biggest Mobile Stories of 2014

Even before the New Year had begun industry experts were predicting the trends that would transform mobile in 2014. Mobile Predictions Annual Survey respondents expect global data growth to be the biggest news for the third consecutive year.

Biggest Players in the Mobile Industry

While Google, Apple, Samsung and the mobile carriers are expected to continue as the most influential players in the biz, Amazon, Qualcomm, Facebook, Microsoft, and Ericsson have also secured places in the top ten according to the survey.

Mobile Categories that will Capture Consumers’ Imaginations

Industry experts are expecting big things from connected devices and wearable computing in 2014. While early models are a little rough and ready, entrepreneurs continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible.

Most Popular Consumer Mobile Applications

The mobile applications that have captured the imagination of the developed world differ from those in emerging countries. Categories Messaging, Mobile Payments and Commerce, and Social secured the top three spots respectively in the developed world, while Mobile Health Monitoring, Social and Mobile Payments and Commerce made it onto the podium in emerging countries.

Which Tablet Platform will Dominate in Two Years?

Industry players expect iOS to continue owning tablet revenues, but Android will dominate in regard to units shifted. Despite making waves with its debut tablet Surface, Windows isn’t thought to be a real contender.

When will Mobile Commerce Overtake Ecommerce?

With online holiday spending already seeing mobile capturing 50% of the digital traffic in 2013, the predictions panel thinks mobile commerce dominance isn’t far off across North America, Europe and Asia – we’re talking 2-3 years away.

2014’s Mobile Most Likely…

More than 50% of folk expect Amazon to launch its own smartphone in 2014. Other predictions include a Microsoft smartphone, and Samsung finally “forking” Android as its global audience on the open-source platform continues to grow.

Whichever product or service reigns supreme in 2014, one thing’s for sure: mobile has already changed the world. As CA Technologies’ Robert Stroud told MentorMate.com: “Mobility in 2014 will not be a fad, mobility will be the norm. Mobile will be “the” mechanism for everything we do, from shop to work!”