As use of the mobile internet, applications and other data services continues to accelerate among American wireless subscribers, the availability of a mobile-optimized web site or application for businesses to make their brands accessible has migrated from a luxury to a necessity. See this latest study from Nielsen: http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=100576

Certainly, this change is not surprising by any means… long anticipated and previously demonstrated by the evolution of the wired web to what it is today, mobile internet capabilities are actually positioned to go beyond desktop computing experiences… but that’s a blog post for another day.

Companies should no longer delay launching a mobile internet presence nor be ignorant of it… we can look back to the wired web and review in retrospect the calamity of doing so. However, as a word of caution, the business community must not simplify the process and consider it appropriate or expedient to just port their existing PC-oriented web site to the mobile access. An addition concern is with web sites, software, and companies that claim to perform “on-the-fly” translation of existing sites to mobile devices… most of these simply result in sites that look like crap.

A truly mobile-optimized web or application presence is one that is not only aesthetically oriented for the smaller, confined and varied displays of mobile devices, but is also purposely architected for the audience, what users will need to quickly accomplish, low bandwith and input methods that are more limited or differ from a full-size keyboard and mouse.