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Orange's trial lets brands place banners on the Orange World portal, potentially giving access to about 15 million Orange mobile and broadband customers. All of the banners contain links, which users can click on to visit the brand's WAP web site.

It is the latest in a string of plays by mobile operators, and heralds a significant shift in the market as technology improvements raise user numbers.

There has been a step forward in mobile browsing as operator portals and search services make it easier for users to leave their branded areas.

It may be then that the mobile web has, at last, become a realistic platform for brands to deliver their ads to consumers and boost the channel as a whole.

"There's no question that 2006 will be seen as the year that mobile advertising took off," says Jeremy Wright, co-founder of mobile marketing agency Enpocket.

"It's not just the operators; media owners are also getting into the space. Expect more announcements like Orange's this autumn."

3 recently announced a deal to stream ITV1 on 3G phones and increase download levels, which, it claims, now work at speeds similar to a PC.

Capacity expansion

The boom is being driven by a number of factors, most linked to advancing technology, which is driving user numbers and attracting major advertisers.

"We are seeing handsets that are more sophisticated and multi-functioning.

At the same time, the network capacity is expanding, with the likes of 3 improving download speeds," says Julian Smith, insight and research director at digital media arm MEC Interaction.

"The capabilities are coming into consumers' hands to do more mobile surfing. We are seeing a rapidly increasing number of mobile internet impressions. More consumers are accessing content, news and information via the mobile web."

Orange is positive the market is poised for take-off and its trial is about ensuring it is well positioned for when it happens.

It has 15 million customers across mobile and broadband, and Steve Ricketts, third-party service relationship manager at Orange, believes 95 per cent of these customers will have web-enabled handsets by 2007.

"Mobile has the potential to be the biggest ad medium if the industry gets it right," says Ricketts. "It can be more targeted and interactive than anything else.

Mobiles are something we carry with us all the time, so we have to ensure the marketing is not irritating."

Wright says it is important for brands to remember that mobile marketing shouldn't happen in isolation. It's vital that it is integrated within the user experience. "You need to consider how mobile works and the mechanics of advertising within it."

Higher impact

He believes that things like click-to-call on banner ads, click-to-receive instant emails with advertising information and click-to-view streamed content within banners will all improve the user experience while offering excellent opportunities for advertisers.

"The nature of a small screen makes advertising impact much higher. On mobiles, banners take up 15 to 20 per cent of the screen - you can't say the same for internet banners," he says.

This makes mobile a great medium for brand impact and direct response.

But, Wright sees a lot of potential still to come, with operators and carriers well placed to use their customer data for targeted ads and location-based marketing.

"There's a very wide range of data, which smarter, technical people will be able to use to serve and deliver banner ads of higher relevance to consumers. This will give even higher ROI, which will really mark out the medium in future. It offers richer and deeper experiences than anything online," adds Wright.

Until now, most traffic has stayed within the operator portals, largely because this is where users land when they open their browser, and due to the difficulties of navigating outside these areas. Frustration over slow-loading pages and an inability to locate specific sites have kept user numbers down.

According to research from Hostway, more than 70 per cent of people with web-enabled handsets haven't used them for this purpose (see vital stats, p15). Yet, those who are accessing the web are becoming more familiar with it and are venturing beyond the operator portals. And more off-portal content is being created as more brands establish WAP sites.

"Brands and marketers are creating sites that don't sit within the walled garden of operator portals, which are increasingly being accessed by consumers through things like WAP push-messaging, where people are encouraged to text a keyword to a shortcode to get an SMS with a dynamic web link in it," says Smith. "We're seeing this as a way people are being driven to off-portal content."

According to him, mobile web search is rising, with people using traditional search engines like Google and mobile search engines such as Motionbridge and Moobl.com.

"In terms of advertising, consumers searching mobile internet are predominantly going through operator portals, so, in terms of where ads can reach users, the opportunities exist within display ads, which we're starting to see appearing on operator and media-owner portals," says Smith.

With users moving off-portal, the major operators are having to look at ways to raise revenue.

Mobile debate

Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) chairman Nick Wiggin thinks the Orange trial is significant for mobile operators and media agencies like Mindshare, which is working with Jaguar on the trial, as it will lead to a debate on mobile metrics.

"It is interesting to see how media agencies are experimenting with buying inventory for mobile internet," says Wiggin. He believes agencies are adapting well because the mobile web is similar to online and this will help the market take off. Wiggin says agencies' involvement will help raise issues about mobile web advertising standards and the MMA will consider if cross-industry standards are needed.

However, he believes the key, short-term issue is the evolution of user experience as handsets develop. "It's early days, but the appetite for mobile is there. We're seeing a lot of traditional channels looking at how they can maximise mobile, and networks are looking at new revenue streams."

French example

To see the future of internet advertising, UK marketers need only look to France where mobile ads are more mature.

Marc Henri Magdalenat, CEO and co-founder of mobile internet ad firm ScreenTonic, says that, after three years of steady growth, the market has reached an excellent level. He says it moved in three stages: the first involved ads through text links on portals; the second saw banner and display ads and the arrival of big brands; and the third is where the market is now.

"When you look at what is being done in terms of advertising now, there are a lot of big brands. We have Coke, L'Oreal, Nike, Reebok, Citroen; we have car manufacturers, insurance firms and banks," he adds.

Magdalenat says mobile web advertising has been buoyed by the rising number of users. He says handsets and ease of use are much better than two years ago. "A lot of people are browsing and looking at sites - that's why brands are coming now."

ScreenTonic's UK arm is working with Orange on its current trial, serving banners. It will take lessons from its French arm to help advertisers understand mobile web's potential.

If the market continues at its current pace, Andrew Robertson, CEO of Omnicom BBDO's 2005 prediction may come true: "Mobiles will replace TV as the most important advertising medium for the industry."