Social networking has infiltrated our mobile phones, as figures released by Telstra show customers are flocking to their mobiles to stay connected on the go.
The number of people using Facebook on their mobiles has grown by 390 per cent since April of last year, while mobile Twitterers have increased by a staggering 450 per cent.
MySpace has enjoyed a similar surge in cellular activity with Telstra customers utilising the social networking site doubling in the last twelve months.
After examining the social networking habits of more than 5 million 3G mobile customers, Telstra found Facebook to be the clear market leader with MySpace and Twitter trailing.
YouTube is another popular mobile destination for customers with smartphones proving to be an effective remedy to the monotony of the daily commute.
In response to this boom, Telstra is today launching its new social networking portal combining the three services to help users manage their respective social profiles.
The service, known as ‘Tribe’, lets social networkers do everything they would on each of the three sites from a single location, allowing customers to even update simultaneously across different platforms.
Uploads through the portal are free for all users, however Telstra pre-paid customers need to have a minimum recharge of $20 in the past 30 days to access the service.
Ross Fielding, Executive Director of Telstra Mobility Products, was excited to announce the new multi-function service this morning.
“Tribe lets social networking fans – from fanatics to first-time users – access comments, view pictures, post updates and upload photos via a neat and secure mobile portal.
“Best of all, data used to access the service is unmetered meaning most Tribe features are available at no cost to consumers.”