With the growing popularity of online social communities like MySpace and Facebook, it probably was only a matter of time before these services made their way onto mobile devices, with user bases large enough to warrant comment by an industry analyst firm.

 

That’s exactly what happened Monday when ABI Research (News - Alert) released a report on what it calls “mobile social communities,” predicting that worldwide, on-the-go users will grow to 174 million by 2011—up from almost 50 million currently.

 

ABI analyst Clint Wheelock described the migration of social communities to mobile devices as a significant advent in the evolution of technology and its effect on people’s lives.

”The rapid rise of online social communities - gathering places such as MySpace and Facebook - has done more than bring the ‘pen pal’ concept into the 21st century,” Wheelock commented in a statement. “It has created a new paradigm for personal networking. In a logical progression, many social communities are now based on the mobile phone and other portable wireless devices instead of (or as well as) the PC.”

 

Wheelock added: “Such mobile social communities extend the reach of electronic social interaction to millions of people who don't have regular or easy access to computers.”

 

Mobile social communities are not just a social phenomenon, of course. They’re also big business—or potentially so. Established companies that provide technology and marketing necessary for online social networking—such as SMS.ac, AirG and Jumbuck—face potential competition from new entrants hoping to grab a piece of the pie.

 

ABI noted in its report that making such social communities profitable can be done in a number of ways, including: 

Perhaps not surprisingly, given the fact that mobile phones in the region tend to be more advanced than in the U.S. and Europe, ABI predicts that mobile social communities will grow most (percentage and absolute number of members) in Asia-Pacific.

 

“What would help drive these communities is for more operators to sponsor them," Wheelock said. “In the US, operators have not yet put much backing behind them, which means that it's not simple for a mobile subscriber to get a new phone and immediately join an online social community. They have to seek out a third-party provider. But that's going to change rapidly.”

 

In fact, it appears that it’s already changing: Cingular (News - Alert) on Monday announced a deal with MySpace.com, allowing users of the social networking site to access their profiles using Cingular phones. The service costs $2.99 per month plus charges for data usage.

 

It seems likely that other, similar partnership between social networking sites and mobile providers will emerge in the coming months.