Associated Press Mobile News Network’s incredible growth

The Associated Press Mobile News Network released the statistics for the month of August last week. Needless to say, the numbers are quite big. Let’s take a look.

1. The mobile news network got more than 16 million page views for the month of August.

2. 948 news organizations have signed up so far with the Mobile News Network to provide content, making it one of the most comprehensive news networks available today. It is worth mentioning that when AP launched this Mobile News Network on the 5th of May this year, only 107 news organizations were onboard. In other words, the network has had an incredible 786% growth, which is unprecedented to say the least.

3. While the mobile site www.apnews.com/mobile accounts for only 5% of the total traffic, a whopping 95% of the traffic for the network comes from Apple iPhone and iTouch. AP’s decision to optimize its news network for the iPhone proved to be extremely successful.

4. This news network has proved to be a great source for local news. More than a million local stories were read by mobile users during the month of August alone. In fact, local news is the second most widely read item in the network after top stories. California singlehandedly accounts for 20% of the total local content traffic.

5. According to statistics, mobile users access the network all through the day – right from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. The traffic on weekdays and weekends pretty much remains the same.

6. Each wireless user that accesses this network views 37 pages per month on an average.

7. The most accessed news items are – Top stories, local news, sports news, entertainment, and photos – in the same order.

I can think of two important reasons behind the success of AP’s Mobile News Network. First - AP’s decision to use the technology of Verve Wireless for the network and second - its decision to optimize its mobile news network for the iPhone. Verve Wireless’ patent pending technology has made AP’s Mobile News Network one of the easiest sites to access from a mobile phone. And by optimizing its network for the iPhone, AP has cashed in on the buzz of iPhone big time.

Overall, AP’s Mobile News Network is quite a success. With AP planning to expand its network by working closely with publishers, marketers, and news agencies, we can expect a huge surge in growth in the months to come.

Categories: All things mobile phones.

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