The Mobile Web refers to browser-based web services such as the World Wide Web, WAP and i-Mode (Japan) using a mobile device such as a cell phone, PDA, or other portable gadget connected to a public network. Such access does not require a desktop computer, nor a fixed landline connection. The total number of mobile web users grew past the total number of PC based internet users for the first time in 2008 (source: Tomi Ahonen Almanac 2009).

However, Mobile Web access today still suffers from interoperability and usability problems. This is partly due to the incompatibility of the format of much of the information available on the Internet with mobile devices and partly due to the small physical size of the screens of mobile devices and other device limitations.
'Mobile Internet' is access to the Internet using a mobile wireless modem, either integrated into a mobile phone or in an independent device (USB modem, PCMCIA card).

Nowadays USB modems are HSPA (3.5-3.75G) modems. Many users use their mobile telephones as a way of connecting their personal computer to the Internet via 3G, GPRS or CSD.
The development of standards is one approach being implemented to improve the interoperability, usability, and accessibility issues surrounding mobile web usage.

The W3C Mobile Web Initiative is a new initiative set up by the W3C to develop best practices and technologies relevant to the Mobile Web. The goal of the initiative is to make browsing the Web from mobile devices more reliable and accessible. The main aim is to evolve standards of data formats from Internet providers that are tailored to the specifications of particular mobile devices. The W3C has published guidelines (Best Practices, Best Practices Checker Software Tool) for mobile content, and is actively addressing the problem of device diversity by establishing a technology to support a repository of Device Descriptions.

W3C is also developing a validating scheme to assess the readiness of content for the mobile web, through its mobileOK Scheme, which will help content developers to quickly determine if their content is web-ready. The W3C guidelines and mobile OK approach have not been immune from criticism. This puts the emphasis on Adaptation, which is now seen as the key process in achieving the Ubiquitous Web, when combined with a Device Description Repository.

mTLD, the registry for .mobi, has released a free testing tool called the MobiReady Report to analyze the mobile readiness of website. It does a free page analysis and gives a Mobi Ready score. This report tests the mobile-readiness of the site using industry best practices & standards.

Other standards for the mobile web are being documented and explored for particular applications by interested industry groups, such as the use of the mobile web for the purpose of education and training e.g. Standards for M-Learning Project.

The first access to the mobile web was commercially offered in Finland in 1996 on the Nokia Communicator 9000 phone on the Sonera and Radiolinja networks. This was access to the real internet. The first commercial launch of a mobile-specific browser based mobile web service was in 1999 in Japan when i-Mode was launched by NTT DoCoMo.
Evolution of mobile web standards

The Mobile Web primarily utilises lightweight pages written in Extensible Hypertext Markup Language (XHTML) or Wireless Markup Language (WML) to deliver content to mobile devices. Many new mobile browsers are moving beyond these limitations by supporting a wider range of Web formats, including variants of HTML commonly found on the desktop Web.

An example Web 2.0 technology used on the mobile web is the blog, resulting in the term moblog. Critics point to the difficulties of transferring Web 2.0 concepts such as open standards to the mobile web. On the other hand, advocates present it as a means of pushing information up onto the web in addition to bringing information down to the user. This push to allowing offline content to popular websites empowers the user. Furthermore, many major companies see the rapidly growing demand for advanced web access via mobile phones and provide a mobile version of their site. This allows users, even with newer devices, to quickly access websites and services in a view that is customized for mobile. Some examples include American Airlines and Victoria's Secret among many others.
Seven Mass Media

Since the first ringing tone was sold on the mobile phone in Finland in 1998, the mobile has emerged as the Seventh of the Mass Media. Today a wide range of paid media content is consumed on mobile phones ranging from 9.3 billion dollars of music and 5 billion dollars of videogaming to horoscopes, jokes, news, adult entertainment, etc. Also like on all other media, advertising appeared onto mobile when a free news service launched in Finland sponsored by ads in 2000. In 2005, The Crazy Frog ringtone became the first mobile ringtone to cross over into the mainstream music charts, beating Coldplay for the Number 1 spot on the UK charts. The virtual world collided with the physical.