While interest varies by region, a new report from the Mobile Marketing Association in conjunction with research partner Synovate confirms mobile marketing's growing acceptance worldwide.

The MMA's Annual Attitude & Usage study covers Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Britain, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea, Spain and United States. The goal is to help brands and marketers understand the habits of mobile consumers, as well as shed light on usage patterns by demographic groups.

The study is free to all MMA global and regional members. It is available for a reduced fee to MMA local council members and the industry. Outgoing MMA president Laura Marriott is buoyed by the results of the survey, as she points out in this Q&A:

What are the key findings from the study?
The studies are organized into four separate reports covering markets in Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Europe as well as the United States. The key global conclusions are as follows:

Overall interest in mobile marketing varies by geography. The United States and Western Europe report comparable interest levels in mobile marketing. Similar interest levels are also noted among mobile phone users in Asia Pacific and Latin American markets.

One in four mobile users in the U.S. and Western Europe express strong or moderate interest in mobile marketing.

Interest levels are higher in Asia-Pacific and Latin American markets where roughly one-half and two-thirds of mobile users respectively express strong or moderate interest.

In all regions, text-to-win and interactive voting campaigns are the most common efforts in which mobile users have participated.

Echoing receptivity to mobile marketing overall, Asia-Pacific and Latin American markets report greater participation in mobile marketing efforts. Roughly one-in-five mobile users in these regions report having participated in mobile marketing efforts in the past year.

Creating strong market opportunity for mobile marketers, across all countries and regions surveyed, heavy penetration and reliance on mobile phones combined with strong feature, text and mobile Web usage indicate a willingness to accept mobile phones as devices that reach beyond traditional communications.

Mobile feature usage of non-voice applications -- text, mobile Web, camera and picture messaging -- is strong in all markets.

What does this say about consumer attitudes toward mobile?
More than half of mobile consumers, regardless of market, report that their mobile phone is highly important to their daily life.

And we are seeing from the U.S. data that the usage of mobile features, as well as frequency of use, has increased for the majority of features.

Additionally, usage of non-voice features is on the rise across all age groups.

Text messaging is also on the rise.

Now at levels higher than the past three years, roughly eight in 10 use text messaging to some degree and six in 10 use it on either a daily or weekly basis.

Not only has use of text messaging increased overall, but the number of weekly messages sent and received has increased in the past year as well.

The median for 2008 is 40 messages per week compared to 20 per week in 2007 and 12 per week in 2006.

Is mobile advertising and marketing gaining more acceptability?
The proliferation of text messaging and non-voice feature use suggests that mobile users are willing to view mobile phones as full-scale communication devices versus simply traveling telephones, and potentially may be less resistant to mobile marketing.

Results from the U.S. study show that consumers are more receptive to mobile marketing initiatives, with the 18-24 age group being the most receptive.

From the first study in 2005 to 2008, the adoption rates for mobile marketing participation continue to increase.

What can marketers learn from this exercise?
The MMA A&U study is a significant industry initiative that provides marketers with insight into consumer attitudes and usage globally which can help them to better understand consumer behavior and create more compelling campaigns.

Is the economy affecting mobile marketing?
With the recent economic downturn I expect that we will see many marketers turn their dollars to more proven digital media and we may see a temporary reduction in spending for mobile.

However, those who are convinced of the power of the mobile channel will continue to invest in and support mobile.

What's your advice to mobile marketers?
If you have not already added mobile to your marketing mix, start now.

Mobile is not as complex as it may seem and there is a substantial library of resources available to help get you started.

I would also encourage those already engaged in mobile to start sharing.

The best way to encourage adoption of the mobile channel is to share case studies and best practices. The MMA Web site [at http://www.mmaglobal.com] provides a great resource for sharing these case studies and we welcome your participation.

What do you expect will happen next year in mobile marketing?
Continued growth, continued investment -- and lots more mobile success worldwide.

We will continue to see more of the same, as well as see new technology, devices and applications come online and add to the ever-growing arsenal of opportunities for marketers to add to their marketing mix.