• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, April 4, 2006

Mobile users are increasingly using cell phones for purposes beyond making voice calls, including accesssing the Web, sending text messages, and even recording video clips. But along with the extra functions has come at least one feature users aren't pleased about--spam.

About one in six cell phone owners--18 percent--said they have received unsolicited ads on their mobile devices; that's according to a new study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, the Associated Press and AOL.

The report comes at a time when mobile appears poised to grow as an ad medium.

The Pew study, based on a March survey of 1,300 cell phone users, revealed that more than one in three--35 percent--now use their phones to send and receive text messages, while an additional 13 percent say they don't currently use mobile devices for text messagaing, but would like to do so.

Fewer than one in 10 cell phone users--8 percent--send or receive e-mail on their mobile units, but an additional 24 percent report that they would like to use their phones for e-mail.

The most popular potential functionality was mapping, with almost half of cell users--47 percent--saying they would like to receive mobile maps; just 4 percent currently get such maps.

Twenty-four percent of users say they would like to search for movie listings, weather, stock quotes, and other information on their phones, while 7 percent currently do so. Nineteen percent reported that they would like to play music on their mobile phones, while 6 percent currently play music on mobile; 14 percent said they wanted to be able to watch video or TV on their phones, while only 2 percent now do so.