Is mobile advertising in Europe finally moving toward the mainstream? In a recent study looking at SMS advertising audiences and response rates in Europe, measurement firm comScore (NSDQ: SCOR) found that fewer consumers reported receiving ads for mobile products and services while more said they were getting ads for consumer goods such as food, fashion, restaurants, travel and financial services. In the three months ended August 2008, the number of offers received for non-mobile consumer goods rose 15 percent, compared to last year. At the same time, the number of people receiving SMS adverts for mobile products and services fell nine percent in Europe.

Food is the fastest-growing category of SMS advertising since August 2007, at a rate of 53 percent, followed by clothing-fashion at 38 percent and restaurants at 37 percent. Ads for restaurants and food had the highest level of response; 16 percent of those receiving an advert for a restaurant responded to the ad, while 13 percent of those receiving an offer for food, such as grocery coupons, responded.

comScore also reported double digit growth in the number of European consumers accessing mobile social network in the three months ending August 2008. In Spain, the number of users jumped 20.8 percent, in Italy the figure grew 17.6, in France, it increased 10.4 percent; while in the UK it expanded 10 percent. The exception was Germany, where the number of users accessing a social net through their phone fell 1.8 percent (release).
from mocoNews.net by Dianne See Morrison