According to experts at the Digital Media Forum, social network advertising is expected to grow by 34% in the MENA region in the coming years. A study by the Centre for International Media Assistance (CIMA) has also revealed that about 100 million Arabs are expected to be online by 2015, and Arabs under the age of 29 will represent 75% of Facebook users in the region. “Today one can reach a global audience with the click of a button. The advent of digital technologies is providing a wealth of opportunities in consumer choice and this will drive innovation in technology,” said Raja Trad, CEO of Leo Burnett Group.

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According to analytics firm StatCounter, users accessing the Web through mobile devices has doubled every year since 2009. In its latest report, StatCounter says that global Internet usage through mobile devices rose to 8.5%. According to the firm's report, the global leader in mobile Web devices is Nokia, accounting for 40 % of usage. The firm believes that Nokia's global dominance is due to its high penetration in emerging markets like India.

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According to ComScore, online retail spending in the US reached $49.7 billion in the fourth quarter. This figure has increased by 14% year-over-year, and marks a ninth consecutive quarter of positive year-over-year growth. “The fourth quarter of 2011 capped off what was yet another strong year for online retail, one in which every quarter achieved double-digit increases versus the prior year,” said comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni.

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According to Kenshoo Social, budgets for advertising on Facebook continue to grow at a faster rate than paid search. Analysis of more than 100 billion ads served on Facebook worldwide through Kenshoo Social found digital marketing agency's clients spent 109% more on Facebook in the fourth quarter of 2011 compared with the prior quarter.

However, researchers are left wondering whether budgets for Facebook are growing faster because companies want to join the social media trend, or whether marketers have actually figured out how to calculate ROI from Facebook campaigns. 

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According to the latest research from GfK MRI’s iPanel, a new survey group composed exclusively of tablet and e-reader owners, more than half of both male and female tablet owners are interested in reading digital magazines. According to the research, the proportion is higher among males, with 77% of male tablet owners saying they want to read digital magazines on their device, compared to 68% of female tablet owners.

Read More at Mediapost.com

According to a study by researchers at MIT, Georgia Tech, Carnegie Mellon and The University of Southampton entitled 'Who Gives a Tweet?',  merely 36% of Tweets are appreciated by followers. Participants of the study rated a total of 43,738 tweets posted by 2,014 users, and only liked 36% of all the tweets they rated. Meanwhile, they did not like 25% of them and gave the other 39% a 'neutral rating'.

"If we understood what is worth reading and why, we might design better tools for presenting and filtering content, as well as help people understand the expectations of other users," said Paul André, the lead author of the study. 

Read More at ItProPortal.com

According to a study by The Boston Consulting Group, 77% of CMO's aren’t sure where to reach their customers. The study entitled “Marketing Capabilities for the Digital Age,” questioned marketing executives at 31 major corporations in Asia, Europe, Latin America and the U.S., and found that 96% use Facebook and use 83% Twitter. However, 55% said they have only “minimal or informal metrics to measure the impact and return on investment of digital marketing efforts.”

 Read More at MediaPost.com

According to a study by the Pew American & Internet Life Project, 52% of adult cell phone owners use their devices while in a store to get help with purchasing decisions. Additionally, 38% use their phone to call a friend for advice while in a store, 24% look up product reviews online in-store, and one-quarter check pricing online to see if they can get a better deal elsewhere.

Read More at MediaPost.com

According to a new report from the Newspaper Association of America, traffic to newspaper websites rose nearly 6% during the fourth quarter of 2011. Newspaper sites had more than 111 million monthly unique visitors, an yearly increase of about 6 million. According to the Newspaper Association of America's analysis of comScore data, a total of 63% of all U.S. adult Internet users visited newspaper sites during the quarter. 

Read More at NetNewsCheck.com