BII MOBILE INSIGHTS: What IT Decision Makers Really Think About Mobile Devices

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What You Need To Know About BYOD (Dell)
How does bring your own device (BYOD) work best? How can companies ensure that their employees are happy and working productively on their own devices? To answer these questions, Dell Software surveyed IT decision makers in more than ten countries:

• 59 percent said they'd be at a competitive disadvantage without BYOD
• Nearly three-quarters deploying user-focused BYOD reported improvements in employee productivity, customer response times and work processes
• 64 percent stated that BYOD can only deliver massive benefits if the specific needs and rights of each user are understood
• The two technology areas most commonly implemented first for BYOD are desktop virtualization and mobile device management
• 56 percent stated that BYOD has completely changed their IT culture

Read the full press release or white paper to learn more.

Is Mobile Still A Challenge For Google? (CNN Money)
Google's got a mobile dilemma. The search giant's sales soared in the fourth quarter as clicks on ads exploded, boosted by mobile searches. But the amount that advertisers paid Google for those clicks continued to slip. Google also lost money on its Motorola business. Yet Google said consumers are beginning to change their behavior on mobile devices, and they're becoming more willing to make purchases on them. "Distinctions between devices are becoming less meaningful," Nikesh Arora, Google's chief business officer, said on a conference call with analysts. Google CEO Larry Page said on the call that he doesn't expect the cost-per-click issue to be a "long-term problem," though he wouldn't predict when cost-per-click would be more closely aligned with overall click growth. Google is still experimenting in the field. Here are three charts that show that Google might be turning the mobile ad ship around.

Apple Maintains Lead In U.S. Smartphone Sales (Kantar via Redmond Pie)
According to Kantar WorldPanel, the iPhone was the top-selling smartphone for the 12 holiday shopping weeks ending December 23 2012 in the United States, with 51.2 percent of sales, followed by Android with a strong 44.2 percent. Android's result represented a slight drop from its 44.8 percent share in the comparable period of 2011. Windows Phone remains at third place, with a 2.6 percent market share.

More interestingly, this report implies that Android users have been switching to the iPhone. Despite recent rumors and speculation that Apple is losing its footing, its position is still strong.

Firefox OS Shows Off First Phones (MIT Technology Review)
Geeksphone is making the first Firefox OS-powered devices, and they’re looking good. The Firefox OS, an open-source, heavily Web-dependent mobile operating system that Mozilla is developing, plans to roll out some decent-looking smartphones in February. Developers will be able to use these devices to build apps for the platform. Mozilla’s director of websites and developer engagement, Stormy Peters, introduced the first two smartphone models, which are being made by a company called Geeksphone. The phones look similar to the iPhone (and, by extension, many other smartphones on the market), with a touch-screen face framed in black. If they’re priced low enough they could snag developers who are still on the fence about making apps for the platform and want to see it running on a purpose-built device.

Mobile Ownership Trend In BRIC Markets (Various via Dazinfo)
Demand for smartphones and tablets has continuously been increasing over the last couple of years in the emerging markets. Before going further, we must first look at mobile ownership trends in emerging markets. According to a Nielsen report, smartphone penetration among mobile subscribers has already passed the 30 percent mark in Russia, Brazil, and China.

In terms of ad growth in the different world regions, Gartner has predicted that display ads will grow faster than search ads this year. Mobile advertising revenue will reach $11.4 billion in 2013.

To understand just how fast mobile is exploding in the BRICs, check out the BI Intelligence report on how to win in the new growth markets.

Mobile Marketers Prepare To Measure The Value Of Mobile (Marketing Week)
Nielsen and the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) are preparing to launch their joint bid to measure the economic value of mobile advertising as the trade body aims to bolster the profile of the media among brand-side marketers. The pair are preparing to launch SMoX.me (Smart Mobile Cross Marketing Effectiveness) which they claim is the industry’s first panel-based research study of the effectiveness and economic value of mobile advertising. SMoX.me will help brands optimize their campaign budgets to accommodate consumer shifts in media consumption, especially the trend towards mobile devices.

Mobile Internet At An All Time High In China (CINIC via Fashionbi)
The China Internet Network Information Center report confirmed mobile Internet users accounted for 74.5 percent of the nation's total Internet population, which stood at 564 million, amid a slower growth rate in Internet users.

The report also said, "There is great potential in the mobile Internet as an increasingly large number of smartphones hit the market." It further said, "Among the wide range of services on mobile devices, mobile shopping witnessed rapid expansion in the second half of 2012. Shopping on mobile devices has become an important driver of the growth of online shopping in China."

Avid Sports Fans Are 52 Percent More Likely To Own A Tablet (Nielsen via Mashable)
Sports fans are highly connected to tech and digital world. If you're an avid sports fan, there's a good chance you're pretty tech savvy. In fact, according to new Nielsen data, you're 52 percent more likely to own a tablet than the average consumer.

In fact, about 60 percent of tablet and smartphone owners who use mobile devices for sports content do so at least once a day. Sports fans in general are also more likely to have other tech-related tools and gadgets than their non-sporty counterparts, from DVR for taping games (42 percent) and gaming consoles (33 percent) to smartphones (21 percent) and HDTV (20 percent).