Today we released the April 2009 AdMob Mobile Metrics Report, our monthly look at the traffic flowing through our network.  For the first time, we have included data from third party sources in order to help address the following questions – how does AdMob data compare to the number of handsets sold, and how does usage of mobile Web sites compare to usage of HTML sites from mobile devices?

Our first comparison is between smartphone market share based on our mobile Web and application data and market share based on the number of smartphones sold. For the handset sales estimate we used Gartner’s estimate of smartphone sales in 2008 as a proxy for the installed base of smartphones.  This comparison gives a relative measure of which devices access mobile Web more often. We found that usage on iPhone and Android devices is greater than their relative market share while usage on the Symbian, RIM, and Windows Mobile devices lagged their relative market share.

Our second comparison uses data from Net Applications as a proxy for browsing on HTML sites from smartphones. Not surprisingly, the relative usage of both mobile Web sites and HTML sites is highest on Apple and Android devices. The iPhone OS had 8 percent of the smartphone market, but generated 43 percent of mobile Web requests and 65 percent of HTML usage. Ad requests from applications contributed to this heavy usage. Take a look at page 4 of the new April 2009 report for more details.

Right now, it’s clear that usage of mobile Web sites, applications and HTML sites is growing.  But just because iPhone and Android overindex more today, it does not mean HTML sites will rule.  Here is our take.  We think that regardless of where the big players place their bets, it will be the consumer that decides what gives them the best Internet experience on their mobile device and that will be what they use.

Note that since we are making these comparisons based on data from three very different sources, which means the findings should be taken with a grain of salt. While we believe the results provide usable insight, the limitations should be noted. This is our attempt to answer the questions we receive from our publishers, developers, and advertisers.  If you are new to our Mobile Metrics report, please read our earlier blog post for more information on our methodology.

Mike F
Product Marketing