A study conducted by independent web analytics company StatCounter has disclosed that mobile and tablet devices accounted for 51.3% of internet usage worldwide in October compared to 48.7% for desktop.
It is the first time ever since StatCounter began tracking stats for internet usage. The development is said to signify a wakeup call for organisations that are yet to integrate their businesses with mobile internet services.
The study comes as no surprise giving that a few months ago Internetworldstats had also noted the growing attraction of mobile internet. Africa alone accounts for over 28% internet penetration while Nigeria has the highest number of internet users in the continent and is ranked seventh in the world.
Google had also reported that more researches were carried out via mobile platforms than on desktop as of last May.
Aodhan Cullen, CEO StatCounter noted while commenting on the study, “This should be a wakeup call especially for small businesses, sole traders and professionals to make sure their websites are mobile friendly. Many other websites are not.
“Mobile compatibility is increasingly important not just because of the growing traffic but because Google favours mobile friendly websites for its mobile search results.”
He noted the Google Small Business tool which helps companies to test their website mobile performance.
Desktop remains the preferred primary mode of internet usage in matured markets such as the United States and the United Kingdom despite the rapid growth of mobile devices.
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