The most widely used form of mobile search was 411 used by 18.1 million users, followed closely by SMS based searching used by 14.1 million users. Local listings were the leading search objective in terms of users with 27.1 million. Close to 15 million (14.8) said they searched for information about news, weather, sports scores, while 11.3 million said they searched for mobile content.

  "As more mobile users turn to their phone for the answers they need, mobile search has quickly escalated as a critical part of the mobile media and advertising landscape," said Kanishka Agarwal, VP of Mobile Media for Nielsen Mobile.

"Knowing how mobile searchers find information — and what they’re looking for — will help us intelligently engage with consumers through mobile search."

Demographics vary by search method. Sixty-one percent of 411 search users are female, while 60 percent of WAP search users are male. SMS-based searching skews younger when compared to other methods of search. Thirty-three percent of SMS searchers are under 25.

For the report Nielsen surveyed over 5,700 mobile search users who use at least one mobile data service.
 

This service is only currently available in the United States. Even though I live less than 20 miles from the US border neither service works here. Last week it was a little clearer. Calling GOOG-411 ( 1-800-466-4411 ), I was told that the service was not available. Calling CALL-411 ( 1-800-225-5411 ), I got a busy signal. This week it is less satisfactory. The Google service gives me information on Langley, Washington when I ask for Langley, British Columbia. The Microsoft service tells me repeatedly, “I didn’t get that”. Presumably it’s only a matter of time until both services are available here.

Tom Spring of PC World was able to do a matched comparison. In his opinion, the result currently is a draw. Both services delivered the correct result, with Google taking a little longer since it repeats the request for confirmation. He has an interesting comment that the Google service is much simpler while the Microsoft service is slightly confusing in offering more choices. It’s perhaps no coincidence that this mirrors how both approach the regular keyword search. Google has that beautifully simple search page. Microsoft usually offers search within a portal page that flags the other services they have available.

It would be interesting to know whether either or both do user tests in deciding which format they will follow. Usability or the science of creating satisfactory user experiences regrettably does not receive the attention it should. Watching how typical users complete tasks as they use a particular service or website is an easy way to confirm that the best choices are being made. Given the expense of creating such services, it would seem foolhardy not to spend the limited extra dollars involved in checking whether the users think you have it right.

Related:

GOOG-411, A Harbinger Of The Mobile Web

GOOG-411 or CALL-411 – Voice-actuated Mobile Web

BTW, Live Search 411 Is Taking On GOOG 411

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The company also revamped its driving directions to use real time traffic information, and dynamically reroute directions based on those details. People with Internet-capable mobile devices can get links to traffic maps from the Live Search 411 service.

Local search users on the desktop will see several updates to Live, derived from continued updates to Microsoft’s Visual Earth platform. The company said they have expanded bird’s eye and 3-D coverage to 80 percent of the US population.

Almost 200 cities may be viewed in 3-D, and these images can be combined with the bird’s eye view of mapped cities in Live Search for a greatly detailed experience.

The real push for improvement came to local search, where they compete with Yahoo, Google, and Ask among others for a piece of a booming multi-billion dollar advertising market. Microsoft hopes its local search combination of expert sources and user-generated content, along with their mapping technology, proves a difference maker.

 The sign wasn’t too specific, but it conveyed that it was a free directory information service of some type. So, being intrepid explorers, we gave it a whirl from the car. First, we spoke the city, “San Francisco.” Then, we were prompted for a business name or category. We thought residential lookup might have been an option, but on the spur of the moment, we gave it “restaurants”. We were then prompted for an address or an intersection, and it recognized “Market and Valencia” without a hitch. In each case, the speech recognition was correct on the first try and our input was repeated for confirmation. It then proceeded to list restaurants close to that location, offering to connect us with their phone number or text the info to our cell phone. Both features worked fine. Three jaded techies were impressed by the accuracy and overall functionality.

Later, we decided to use it for real in Palo Alto. This time, we thought we’d throw it a curveball and for the category said “sandwiches” – not exactly a typical yellow pages hot spot. Quite amazingly, Google 411 knew what we wanted and began reciting a list of sandwich shops. Bypassing Subway, we opted for an interesting sounding shop with a vaguely Italian air to its name. We were texted the location info flawlessly. Again, very impressive in delivering what we were looking for without a hitch.

We have to admit, though, that it wasn’t perfect. When we arrived at the restaurant’s door, we found it closed, the windows papered over, and a For Sale sign on the door. I guess we should have done the “connect now” option.

Overall, Google 411 looks to be off to a great start – it delivered useful information in an effortless manner, and in a way that is far superior to a typical directory assistance service. Try it at 1-800-GOOG-411.

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To quote the company more exactly, Local.com chairman and CEO Heath Clarke said, “We encourage directory assistance and free 411 companies that are interested in using our intellectual property to enter into licensing agreements with Local.com.”

What he means by "encourage" is "you better."

Last week’s award, U.S. Patent Number 7,231,405 covers location-based search, or indexing and retrieving web-related information by geographical location.

The patent announced today covers a method of responding to enhanced directory assistance inquiries using various protocols including voice-enabled and SMS systems, as well as pay-per-referral monetization methods.

“In our view," said Clarke, "the burgeoning free 411 marketplace is being underwritten by a variety of advertising supported models. Our patent 7,200,413 is directly related to a referral advertising model such as pay-per-click or pay-per-call listings, which are delivered to consumers as a result of an enhanced directory assistance inquiry or local search, where the results can be provided to consumers via many mobile channels, including voice.”

And that means everybody’s going to have to pay up, which is why Wall Street is so excited, and why Local.com shares are trading at above $11.

Luckily, Google has a lot of cash sitting around. The search company recently updated its already existing ad-supported telephone directory service, 1-800-GOOG-411, to include mapping services as well.

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Google’s Got The 411

Google Voice Local Search is an automated free service that offers information on local businesses. Users can search business listings by name or by category. The information provided on Google Voice Local Search is the same found on Google Maps.

Once a user has found a listing they can have the information sent to their mobile phone through SMS or they can be directly connected to the business free of charge, though your phone carrier may charge for the phone call or for receiving an SMS.

To access the service, users can dial 1-800-GOOG-411. Google cautions that the service is still in its experimental phase and may not be available at all times or work for all users. The service is offered only in English and in the U.S.

Surprisingly, the service is not ad supported and does not provide residential listings.

Google will be competing with similar services such as 1-800-YelloPages owned by AT&T, TellMe recently purchased by Microsoft and 1-800-Free411.

Danny Sullivan raises an interesting point about who is missing from the 411 markets.  "Yahoo is noticeably absent from the group and has speech assets and speech professionals working there (former Nuance employees). So this may prompt further attention to a voice-based local search offering at Yahoo."

It will be worth watching what kind of impact Google will have on other competitors and what users will think of their latest offering.

The service was announced last week at the DEMOfall 2005 Conference, an industry forum for launching new technology and products. The service aims to capture part of the $8 billion collected annually by mobile phone companies, who charge between $0.75 to $3.49 per directory inquiry.

Callers listen to a 10-second advertising spot before receiving the requested listing. Advertisers benefit because the service is based solely on a pay-per-call advertising model, where advertisers only pay whenever they receive a phone call from a consumer who is ready to buy.

Further, according to CNet and Search Views, the highly locally targeted ads would be for the competitor of the requested business.

“The ad will most likely be for a competitor of whomever’s number they called for (Pizza Hut for Domino’s, etc.) and may include some sort of incentive or discount (order now and buy one get one free). Callers can press a button to change their minds mid-call and immediately be connected to the competitor instead,” writes Erin Bradley at Search Views.

Over 35,000 local and national merchants and service providers have signed up to advertise with the service, including 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Rescue Rooter, Entertainment Book, ServiceMagic (an IAC/InterActiveCorp Company), Carlson Wagonlit Travel, and Terminix.

“1-800-FREE411 is an exciting, and logical, place for ServiceMagic to reach consumers seeking to hire prescreened and customer-rated residential contractors,” said Craig Smith, Vice President of Business Development at ServiceMagic.com. “The service allows us to reach consumers at the exact time they are making a purchase decision and we only get charged when our phone rings.”

The executives involved in the new service are Scott Kilger (formerly of Excite@Home, MatchLogic, Narrative Communication Corp., Lotus Development, WordPerfect, and IBM), Tom Latinovich (ormerly of Sage Hill Partners, Excite@Home, and Farallon Investments), and Joshua Kopelman (founder of Half.com, Infonautics Corporation and TurnTide).

The brains behind the operation seem to have a history of creating successful start-ups and then selling them to larger entities, according to the Free411 website. So enjoy it before MCI decides it can’t afford to lose the $3.49 per inquiry they’ve been extorting from customers.

UpSNAP! recently launched its free 411 service allowing mobile users to access White Pages and Yellow Pages listings directly from a cell phone via text-messaging, without the typical $1.25 charge by most wireless carriers. In addition to free 411, UpSNAP! incorporated a Merchant Call-Back service, which allows users to request a callback from featured merchants at the touch of a button on any text-enabled phone. The UpSNAP! telephony servers then automatically connect a call between the mobile phone user and the merchant. Consumer privacy is protected at all times, and the consumer has total choice to activate a callback, which spares them from having to write down a number while on the go.

“Until today, consumers had to pay to find merchants in the cellular world,” said Tony Philipp, President and CEO of UpSNAP!. “UpSNAP! reverses this model. Consumers can contact merchants for free, and local merchants can now take advantage of a performance-driven advertising model even without a web presence. LookSmart, with its large base of advertisers and flexible paid listings platform, was the obvious partner to work with to power this advertising service.”

The agreement between UpSNAP! and LookSmart will offer merchants the opportunity to reach more than 160 million mobile consumers. For the first time, advertisers have a performance-based revenue model via text-messaging on cellular telephones. As conventional Yellow Page usage continues to decrease, online “look-ups” have steadily increased by nearly 2 billion since 2001, according to research firm The Kelsey Group. Rather than paying a flat fee for Yellow Page ads, merchants utilizing UpSNAP! now have access to paid listing options with a built-in metric to account for direct responses from mobile consumers using UpSNAP!’s free 411.

“By partnering with UpSNAP!, LookSmart continues to deliver on its mission of delivering highly qualified leads to advertisers at reasonable prices,” said Boris Shimanovsky, VP Business Development at LookSmart. “The fast-growing text-messaging industry and UpSNAP!’s text-to-call technology gives LookSmart advertisers an opportunity to reach consumers from key demographics at the time they most need location-specific services. The advertiser’s name, address and contact details are stored in the phone of the consumer, who can then place a call to the advertiser at the touch of a button.”

The U.S. accounts for more than 160 million mobile consumers and 2.5 billion mobile text messages sent each month, making the cell phone by far the most personal communication device for consumers and the most-coveted media platform for advertisers, according to the Mobile Marketing Association. UpSNAP! plans to introduce many new features, applications and enhanced services over the next several months.

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Although the information service probably won’t be available until next year at the earliest, some details already are clear. The centralized database of wireless numbers would be off limits to telemarketers, and consumers would be able to choose whether to have their numbers listed or unlisted, according to people familiar with the process.

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