February 16, 2007
A Step Forward For Mobile Local Search
One thing that has stood in the way of mobile local search adoption is the lack of a clear and compelling value proposition. This is partly a result of hardware restrictions; there are small screens and keypads on most cell phones and smart phones haven't reached mainstream penetration (although prices are coming down which should bode well for mobile local search).
But another major factor has been that the control exerted by carriers in the U.S. and their ability to decide what devices and platforms work on their networks (this is not the case in Europe). This has effectively stifled a lot of innovation at the application level, as explored in the recent Kelsey Group report Targeting Users: Application Level Innovation in Mobile Local Search).
