According to a recent study by Google, adult content is the most sought after MoCo by mobile search users with cellphones. Google's team found that 20 percent of searches on cellphones were for adult content, while only 5 percent of searches on PDAs were for it. PDAs are generally for work-related purposes, so this finding is less than ground-breaking; but the real kicker is that only 8.5 percent of searches on desktop computers are for adult material. The researches sifted through 1 million searches by users of their mobile search software.
Google's explanation for the popularity of such searches on cellphones is that users regard their handsets as intensely personal devices which leads to more comfort in querying these search terms. Also, users are more confident that others won't discover their activities. That seems to be the key here: Users are more likely to search for adult content on their handsets because it's easier to get away with it, not because they have a desperate need to view adult MoCo while on the subway.
For more on Google's mobile search study:
- check out this article [1] from New Scientist Technology (with a futuristic dateline)
Links:
[1] http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=mg18925406.200&feedId=info-tech_rss20