The document outlines key mobile application trends for 2012, highlighting significant growth in location-based services, mobile social networking, and mobile commerce. It predicts the mobile payments sector will quadruple by 2014, while mobile advertising is expected to reach $2.6 billion in spending. Additionally, it forecasts that the number of mobile internet users will surpass 100 million by the end of 2012.

1. Mobile Application Trends for 2012
User Experience Meets Innovation
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2009 2010 2011 2012
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2. Location Based Services
The user base for consumer location based services is
expected to reach 1.4 billion people by 2014.
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3. Social Networking
The growth rate of mobile social networking is outpacing
traditional social networking platforms by an average
margin of 46% year of year.
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4. Mobile Search
61% of all smartphone users perform local searches from
their device, and search results listing location received up to
a 200% increase in click through rate.
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5. Mobile Commerce
More than half of all U.S. smartphone owners use their
device to perform retail comparison searches while shopping
inside a physical store.
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6. Mobile Payments
According to recent Juniper Research, mobile payments are
expected to quadruple from now to 2014 putting the total
transaction amount at $630 billion.
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7. Mobile Advertising
Text message and online display ads have the lowest
consumer trust of all advertising channels. Despite that, U.S.
mobile ad spend is expected to reach $2.6 billion in 2012.
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8. Mobile and Travel
Mobile travel bookings is on pace to reach 207% growth
YOY with the total dollar amount exceeding $8 billion.
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9. Mobile Object Recognition
As high-end mobile devices are now equipped with
increased sensor and processing abilities, sophisticated apps
that can recognize a user’s surroundings and specific objects
are expected to make an impact by the end of 2012.
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10. Mobile Video
Several popular mobile video sharing applications have
been the driving force behind the growth of mobile video,
which is expected to reach 55 million viewers this year.
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11. Mobile Tablets
The total number of tablet users is poised to reach 55 million
(63% growth YOY) in 2012, and iPad users will make up 76%
of that number.
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12. Overall Mobile Web Users
The total number of mobile internet users will break the 100
million mark by the end of 2012.
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