SpectatorBytes

While it seems hard to see if the iPhone will be as revolutionary for mobile experiences as the iPod has been for portable music devices, something that I think is remarkable is that the iPhone has shown consumers, carriers, publishers and developers the potential of the mobile Web. The announcement of its platform for application developers furthers its role as a catalyst for the growth of Mobile Web usage — both the one that carriers controlled (known as on-deck) as well as the one they don’t (known as off-deck traffic).

Until recently, I felt mobile data/Web services were in the same stage as online services on the PC during the dial-stage. Network speeds were not fast enough and as thus pages took time to load. UI remains simple to avoid compounding the speed issue. Simple text messaging and portal-provided infosnacking drive most of the usage. Non-portal publishers remain small, and advertising dollars remains small.

The release of the iPhone is the catalyst the industry needed to start focusing on enhancing Web experiences on mobile phones (both smart and not). It also comes at a time where smart-phone penetration is growing, network speeds are increasing and consumer demand is growing.

The Mobile Web (again on and off-deck) on phones are about to enter its first stage of meaningful growth. This is the stage where the Mobile Web becomes part of the lives of mainstream users. This stage is likely to be driven by search, shopping sites, first-gen ad networks, portals, local guides, photo managers, maps, etc.

The question would be: is this first stage of the Mobile Web going to be just like Web 1.0 on the PC or would the Mobile Web leapfrog straight through to reach the same phase as that the PC Web is in today — think blogs, social networks, widgets, bookmarking sites, flash casual games, etc.
The answer to that question will depend on how aggressive wireless carriers, developers and publishers invest on the Mobile Web over the next year or so.

Certainly, the iPhone suggest the Mobile Web can be just as rich as the PC Web.