Mobile Web Traffic Continues Rapid Rise, Monetization Strategies Emerging
Nearly every month new research rolls in reporting on the rapid rise of mobile web traffic. According to web analytics firm StatCounter, mobile devices (excluding tablets) accounted for 19.1% of global internet usage in November 2013, which represents a 51.6% increase from a year ago. (Tablet internet usage grew at a similar pace but still accounts for just 4.8% of global usage). And according to a quarterly report by public relations and digital agency Walker Sands, website traffic from mobile devices (including tablets) accounted for 31% of all website traffic in Q4 2013, up 35% since Q4 2012.
In the News
Parse.ly, a web analytics service, conducted a study to discover how much of the growing mobile traffic went to news sites and when those mobile visits reached their peak. Parse.ly measured news traffic within its network of domains—any website with Parse.ly's javascript embedded on it—throughout October 2013. That traffic amounted to roughly five billion pageviews. A fifth of the websites measured were magazine domains, including titles like Parents Magazine, The Atlantic, and Conde Nast Traveler.
According to the study (The Authority Report), mobile made up 13.8% of news site traffic. Of that mobile traffic, 6.5% was from tablets and 7.3% from smartphones.
The study also tracked when mobile news reading occurred, which did not coincide with desktop and laptop reading. Where non-mobile news traffic decreased during evening hours, mobile increased. Mobile news traffic on average was highest on Wednesdays between 8 and 10 p.m., making up about 20% of all news traffic. Desktop and laptop reading peaked around midday generating over 80% of news traffic.
Although magazines made up only a small portion of the sites tracked, Parse.ly CEO Sachin Kamdar thinks these numbers should be aspirational for magazine publishers. "A lot of these news sites we've tracked are digital first. The data is what magazines should see in mobile traffic or are already seeing."
- Companies:
- Atlantic Inc.
Ellen Harvey is a freelance writer and editor who covers the latest technologies and strategies reshaping the publishing landscape. She previously served as the Senior Editor at Publishing Executive and Book Business.
