Internet is becoming more and more accessible on our mobile phones, and it is quickly growing in popularity. Apple, the trendsetter that it is, is using the iPhone series to help our society become more mobile. Apple has become a catalyst in the popularity of mobile internet.

According to RCR News, there are currently 577 million people using the internet on their cell phones; this number is predicted to increase to 1.7 billion by 2013. I believe a large part of this is due to what I call the iPhone Revolution.

Web Made Ridiculously Simple and Accessible

While it may be difficult to know exact numbers at this point in the game, the skyrocketing sales of the iPhone worldwide will provide internet and email access to millions of users in the coming years.

One million iPhone 3G units were sold in the first weekend alone to 22 countries, roughly one-third of the countries that will actually release the device in 2008. Launching it in an additional 48 countries between now and December 31 will only make that number grow exponentially. Each iPhone accesses the internet and email on a consistent basis.

This isn't to say that nobody was surfing the internet or retrieving their email before the age of the iPhone. Far from it -- any smartphone on the market could do all of that. Heck, even non-PDA phones could access web and email. So why am I arguing that iPhones are the catalyst for the increase in mobile internet usage?

They are the catalyst because Apple has made the mobile web mainstream. Before, most mobile web and email users were only using it for business; the iPhone has made it readily available to regular consumers.

Hence, Apple has turned mobile internet into part of a lifestyle. They've made it ridiculously simple to access internet, and added the App Store and MobileMe to make it more useful to the average phone user. Now the mindset of the consumer is changing from "it would be nice, but for $30/month I don't need it" to "I can't live without having it, it will be worth the money to have it."

The Revolution

Not just that, though -- a couple weeks ago I wrote about how the iPhone drives competition to come up with a new unique idea that will completely trump Apple's flagship device. Other manufacturers have come out with iPhone-like devices that also access the internet as well. That's why I referred to this as the "iPhone Revolution", it's because everyone is trying the same thing, thus causing millions more to latch on to the mobile internet concept.

It's easy to browse the internet on your phone now. Beyond the iPhone specifically, new browsers are popping up to give you the same experience on your phone as you would get on your computer.

Society is becoming more and more mobile. Phones are becoming like computers, computers are getting smaller to accomodate travel, and the capacity for these devices continue to grow. What the iPhone did was make a statement; Apple handed the world a clever handheld device that makes us capable of being 100% mobile.

Conclusion

Having the world at our fingertips can certainly make us more productive. It sure beats lugging a phone, mp3 player and large 200-page planner around all the time. Granted, it's not for everyone. Some people have a system in place that works well for them, and there's nothing wrong with that.

But the popularity of the iPhone shows what people really want. Competition will now come out with ways to outdo Apple; T-Mobile is rumored to be planning an App Store of its own that mimics Apple's. With 3G coming to T-Mobile soon, this will likely be a huge hit.

Everyone is buying into mobile internet and discovering how useful it can be on a mobile phone. All the iPhone did was convince everyone that mobile web is a product worth buying into.

Post your thoughts here in my comments section!

UPDATE: This morning the Wall Street Journal released an interview it had with Steve Jobs. In just one month the App Store tallied more than $30 million in sales! Jobs is predicting the future of phones will rely on software to differentiate themselves (much like the PC a decade ago). And frankly, a lot of this software may become more reliant on the mobile internet.

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