Mobile First

We’re all familiar with optimizing content for mobile but how about the other way around?  There has been some recent press addressing mobile as the primary screen.  ESPN’s Mobile VP recently declared mobile as the starting point for all their programming.  He’s biased but  Kayak’s Co-Founder has also embraced the platform and is reconfiguring their website based on their iPhone app.

Why are we starting to see this behavior?  I can think of three reasons.  One, mobile experiences have to have very simple, clean interfaces.  Mobile can also better incorporate touch and gesture controls which is a growing trend and will move to other platforms.  Lastly, mobile provides a means for interacting with other forms of media–think Shazam and Into_Now–with the rise of second screen apps and will continue to grow in importance.

Sources:http://gigaom.com/2012/01/30/why-kayak-prefers-mobile/

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/166622/espn-deems-mobile-first-screen.html