• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, October 1, 2010

What do you think of when you hear a reference to "mobile?" I think of a mobile phone -- either a regular phone or a smartphone.

That's probably what most people think of, a mobile phone. But getting to the point where people -- especially those deciding how big brands spend their ad dollars -- conceive of "mobile" as a term encompassing more than just handsets, is what it may take to really see advertising and e-commerce in the sector grow.

That is, when mobile embraces what is now referred to as "connected devices," including tablets, e-readers, game players, quick-messaging devices and other wireless gadgets that aren't phones. The main benefit of this expanded notion of mobile isn't necessarily increased reach, but the different form factor found in devices like tablets and e-readers: specifically, bigger screens.

If the small screens of cell phones (4 inches at most) have been a built-in limitation to the spread of display advertising in mobile, then the larger screens of the iPad and forthcoming tablets provide the digital real estate online marketers are more accustomed to from the desktop Web.

Advertisers and retailers are already encouraged by what they've seen with the iPad usage. New data released by Nielsen this week showed iPad owners are more receptive than owners of other connected devices to advertising, and more likely to make a purchase after seeing ads. (And the iAd has yet to hit the iPad.)

Other devices featured in the survey included the iPhone, iPod, Sony PlayStation Portable and Acer Aspire One netbook. But response rates across all devices to questions about ad receptivity was typically in the double digits. For example, nearly 60% across the board said they were "Ok" with advertising if it means being able to access content for free.

And at the Shop.org Summit this week, eBay and other retailers talked about seeing higher conversion rates on the iPad than on smartphones or the PC-based Web.

While the iPad has dominated the tablet category so far, Samsung's Android-based Galaxy Tab will debut this month, and BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion, Acer and Lenovo are set to release rival tablets in the coming months. Market research firm In-Stat has forecast that tablets and other connected devices, which total about 400 million units now, will grow to 600 million units by 2013.

Novelty certainly has something to do with consumer, publisher and advertiser excitement around the new crop of portable devices emerging. But the spread of media-centric devices beyond the cell phone over time could change the meaning of "mobile" to more than a cell phone. And if that change in perception takes hold, it will create more opportunities for advertising and e-commerce in the space.