Art Howe, chief executive of Verve (who provide publishers with the technology to create mobile Web sites) says, "Newspapers' strength is providing local news and information and the mobile Web is the logical outlet for local content". He also acknowledges that "mobile is a better way to reach people than print or even Web" because "it's versatile, immediate, travels and is just as compelling as a Web site or a printed page."

More and more people are using their mobiles to surf on the Web: "of the 95 million mobile Internet subscribers, 40 million actively use their phones to go online, double the number two years ago", according to Nielsen Mobile. Added too this, thirteen million people read the news on their mobile and a cellphone version of a Web site extends a site's reach by 13 percent.

Technology providers are coming up with new and innovative ways to tap into this market. Verve Wireless provides publishers with software to create mobile websites, it also helps them design their site for free in exchange for a cut of the ad revenue. Publishers can customize their sites, for example, using text messages for breaking news stories. 140 publishers, including The Associated Press, McClatchy, and the New York Times Regional Media Group uses Verve's technology. Verve's biggest competitor is Crisp Wireless, which has the Tribune Interactive, Gannett Digital and Hearst as costumers.

Source: New York Times and Cyberjournalist.net