Will they or won’t they? Will Mobile Operators make money from mobile advertising or let the opportunity slip away? Real money from Mobile Advertising seems to have been a long time coming and some doubters now say it’ll never materialize. I know some folks who have retrenched further and say all the promise of mobile advertising was, well, just advertising hype!

For sure the eco-system or value chain hasn’t stabilized. Who does what and who gets what part of the cake is still being argued over and whilst the arguing goes on, the revenue present lays unwrapped. It is complicated story to follow so it’s no surprise it’s taking some time for the plot to unfold and I’m reminded of Philip Larkin’s’ quip, ‘ this story has a beginning, a muddle and an end’.

So why don’t we forget the muddle and go straight to the end. The end according to eMarketer is that advertisers will spend $US3.3 billion on mobile advertising in 2013, up from $US648 million in 2008. And maybe 2013 isn’t the end, but just the beginning. For too long mobile operators have either convinced themselves that mobile advertising isn’t really such a big thing after all or have sought to put themselves in the position of king maker in terms of how mobile advertising revenues are dispersed around the players in the value chain. Consequently, we still don’t have lift off.

So what should mobile operators be doing to not only encourage mobile advertising but also to make themselves an important part of the eco-system and take their fare share of revenues? One obvious lesson has already been learnt, or should have been learnt, from early forays into mobile advertising by operators – don’t try to go it alone. This isn’t your area of expertise, it’s an industry sector in its own right with its own way of doing things and you can’t break the mould and start to build a new one. With this lesson grasped, the next step is obvious – find a partner who does know this sector to work with. The ideal partner will be stacked full of advertising know-how, one you can trust and one that has the technical competence, execution capability and products that make you the stand-out operator amongst your competitors. The good news for operators is that these partners are out there and not hard to find. But you need to move quickly because the best of them are being snapped up quickly. They are an important part of the jigsaw, in fact the vital missing piece that’s needed to complete the picture and start delivering advertising revenue.

To help chose the right partner, mobile operators need to do go through a third process. They need to determine where exactly they want to be in the media spectrum. Most of them know intuitively that they want to be media companies and not dumb pipes, but they don’t all know where on the spectrum they fall. Do their ambitions veer towards content creation (like NBC) or is towards aggregation (like YouTube). Based on that decision, their value may or may not actually be in selling mobile advertising, but providing data for mobile experiences, advertising being just one of them.

If eMarketeer are right, the prize is big and the opportunity imminent so it is vital that mobile operators act now. Those that strike first have the highest likelihood of being the big winners when mobile advertising finally comes to town. Perhaps I should comes to our town because already one premium Mobile Ad Network now reaches a unique audience of over 22 million – 42% of all US Mobile Web Users according to a recent Nielsen report. I suppose we shouldn’t be surprised that the US leads the way. Most, if not all of the major developments in advertising and promotions have emanated from the US in the last century and cracking mobile advertising is just the latest.

Mobile has long being thought to be the last great untapped frontier for advertisers and also having many unique qualities which make it potentially the most powerful of all advertising platforms. By using advanced targeting technology advertising networks are helping brands deliver the most relevant messages to their specific audiences for enhanced engagement, higher response and increased conversion rates. This ensures brands and publishers maximize their mobile advertising opportunities with the best ad solutions for advertisers seeking higher ROI from their marketing spend and publishers seeking the highest revenue from their mobile properties.

This is the result of using advanced carrier-grade targeting technology available on the market today, enabling advertisers to target by age, gender, context, demographics, location, ethnicity, finance, occupation, handset, and language to name a few. Already very significant brands are switching their attention to mobile. Adidas, American Express, Bank of America, Best Buy, Continental Airlines, E! Online, Ford, Herbal Essences, Hyundai, Land Rover, Microsoft, Pantene, Nike, Sony are already significant players in mobile advertising for these reasons. Mobile Advertising Networks can reach their consumers through unique audience channels, including luxury auto, news, entertainment, sports, finance, lifestyle, social networking, travel, games and in applications including iPhone, Android and BlackBerry®. These channels are proven to reach affluent audiences that still have disposable income and are spending it.

So, what’s holding mobile operators back on this side of the pond and elsewhere in the world? Maybe some still doubt the value to them of being involved. Some have put it in the ‘to-hard-to-do tray’ and some are still trying to go it alone. The smarter operators will look to the US and see what’s happening today and learn how to get themselves entrenched in the value chain and start to grow significant revenues. This is an ad for mobile ads, so what are you waiting for? Go make it happen!