Google is shifting towards a “mobile first” mentality

The folks from Mountain View clearly have a huge foot in the mobile game, not to mention they’ve been stepping up that game over the past 6 months with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and their new Nexus line. According to a note to investors Google’s been talking more and more about mobile, and multiple employees have stated they are shifting towards a “mobile first” mentality.

This is good news, although we already knew Google had been putting tons of effort on mobile and social with things like Google+. In an investors note to Morgan Stanly, three Google executives talked at the 2012 Open Mobile Summit in San Fran and spoke openly about the future of Google, and where they’re headed. Those three were Rikard Steiber, Google’s global marketing director for mobile and social; Francisco Varela, YouTube’s global director of platform partnerships; and Rich Miner, general partner at Google Ventures.

Now we all know Google has a huge foot in the mobile market. From mobile search on Google, the number one mobile OS in the world, and new devices like the LG Nexus 4 and Samsung Nexus 10. Google’s been continuously pursuing this as of late, and really stepping up their game on all fronts. From a more social experience on mobile with Google+, improving mobile search, Google Now, and more. While speaking at the summit one Googler even said that Google is now considering themselves a “mobile first” company. Obviously they’ll always probably be a search giant and company, but it’s interesting to hear them say it.

During the Summit, Steiber, Google’s head of mobile and social advertising stated that mobile devices are the future (which we already knew) and that in 2013 mobile will be the leading and primary way users access Google. Google expects mobile to surpass 50% of YouTube traffic sometime in 2013. They mentioned that mobile searches have increased by 200% in 2012 by Q3, and 25% of traffic on YouTube and 40% of video views come from mobile devices alone. A number that has seen huge growth and is up 300% in 2012.

While they didn’t specifically state anything regarding Android, this is a clear indication that Google sees mobile, and Android as a leading platform that needs even more attention. We already know Google’s been aiming big in mobile with Android and their Motorola acquisition, and hopefully we see more awesomeness in 2013.

[via SlashGear]