The Mobile Data Association

London, UK, 29th October 2008: The Mobile Data Association (MDA) today announces its quarterly research findings for UK mobile phone activity from July - September 2008 for Text Messaging (SMS) and Picture and Video Messaging (MMS) and identifies new trends.

This quarterly guide provides analysis of current, historical and seasonal trends and growth factors based on the Network Operators’ actual usage figures.

Headline statistics

A summary of findings:

New devices and an ever growing variety of mobile applications have driven overall growth figures in 2008. SMS (text) growth continues to astound while multi-media messages (MMS - still pictures with text and video clips with sound) shows an increasing level of growth. Consumer awareness, the fact that nearly all phones now come ready configured to work with MMS and attractive tariff bundles from the Mobile Network Operators helps fuel this growth.

Q3 2007 analysis compared to Q3 2008

Text Messaging (SMS)

· On average 6.5 billion text messages sent per month

· Over 1.5 billion messages a week or almost 217 million per day

· Britons are sending on average 60 million more messages a day compared to the same period in 2007 – up by 38%

Picture and Video Messaging (MMS)

· We now send 1,495,525 picture and video messages every day

· In 2007 we sent on average 37,833,203 messages per month during Q3

· During the same period this year we sent on average 45,364,272 messages

· This is almost 250,000 more messages every day compared to last year - up by 20 percent.

Steve Reynolds, Chairman of the Mobile Data Association, said: "Our usage figures highlight the UK’s continued enthusiasm and appetite for mobile phones. The mobile landscape is constantly evolving. New mobile phones, with easy to use software, and creative tariffs from the mobile networks, are encouraging people of all ages to use more of their functionality – from music, video and pictures to email communications and now GPS and mapping on the move. The mobile phone has evolved far beyond simple voice and text messaging: it sits at the centre of our lives at home and at work."

Steve Reynolds concluded: "Due to the ever changing landscape, we are working closely with the mobile operators to provide future reports that will identify, in detail, the many different ways in which we are using our mobile phones. We’ll be looking specifically at trends in mobile Internet usage and comparing business and consumer uses. These trends are important for the whole industry to see; there remains a hunger for market data and industry intelligence. Like economic forecasting, the data provides the clues and indicators to new directions and growth areas."

Mobile Data Association advisor, Rob Bamforth, Principal Analyst at Quocirca, said: "Text messaging (SMS) remains a strong story. It has shown good growth as sending messages from mobile phones becomes an essential part of everyday life for many people.  Increasingly, messages are including pictures, sound and video as the number of multi-media messages (MMS) continues to grow.  The emergence of more generous messaging bundles offered by mobile operators supports the impetus for message sending to remain a natural and automatic way of communicating while on the move."

The UK Mobile Report – Q3 2008 statistics in full

Historical Data Analysis: http://www.text.it/mediacentre/

-ENDS-

Terms of use: Any use or reference to these statistics must be accredited to The Mobile Data Association.

For further information or to arrange an interview please contact Paul Doran, Communications Director:

Paul Doran Tel: 0207 819 9333 / Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Notes to Editors

About the Mobile Data Association

The MDA was established in 1994 and was set up to reflect the common voice of the mobile data industry, bringing together and representing the needs of the main mobile operators with the broader mobile industry. Today the MDA’s role is reflective of the diversity of the industry it serves. With a membership base that spans the entire mobile sector from national broadcast and media companies to intermediaries, billing partners, content owners and all points in between.

The MDA is a not-for-profit organisation committed to promoting and helping UK industry growth in mobile data and the mobile industry in general.

How the data is collected

The MDA collects the messaging numbers from individual Mobile Network Operators under a strict code of confidentiality – required to comply with the Competition Laws – and converts these into the totals and charts that are then published on its messaging website at www.text.it and released to the Press and other interested parties on request. This data is unique in presenting absolute numbers rather than estimates projected from samples. It is thus a valuable true indicator of the market.

Some facts:

o All data is compiled and aggregated with the input and support of UK mobile operators O2, Vodafone, T-Mobile, 3, Orange and Virgin Mobile

o SMS statistics are UK MO (mobile originated) person-to-person figures. This excludes any aggregator or other premium rate numbers

o For further information visit the MDA Messaging website at www.text.it