As the editor of the BBC News website, Steve Herrmann, notes, in an average week, the BBC News sites and apps are visited by around 9.7m users worldwide on mobile and tablet devices. That represents about 26% of the total users coming to the BBC News website and this is growing.

Carrington (pictured) made the prediction at this mornings Westminster eForum event, quoting research from prominent Wall Street analyst Mary Meeker, adding that 12% of UK internet users already own such devices.

Quoting Google’s internal analytics, he also told attendees that Google saw a 23% surge in searches from tablet devices last Christmas Day alone because devices such as the iPad were a popular present over the period.

The same research also indicated that 38% of tablet owners use their devices more than their TVs, meaning it becomes their primary media consumption device while at home.

“When people search on tablets, they are more likely to buy than on desktop because the experience is so much better [when sites are optimised for such devices],” said Carrington, adding that 53% of UK population is already dual screening

“When TV ads are aired, we see a big spike in searches and purchases [for the same brands via mobile and tablet devices].”

During his presentation, he also added that m-commerce will grow rapidly in the UK throughout 2012 as big brands, and retailers in particular, start to “get mobile”, and that 28% of existing UK smartphone owners have purchased an item on their device.

“On some days, mobile will be worth more than digital this year,” he said. “On Mother’s Day this year, some companies [such as flower-delivery services] got more than 50% of queries and sales from mobile devices.”

His presentation was concluded by urging companies to at least provide the most basic of mobile-optimised experiences. “If you don’t have your site optimised for mobile it’s like shutting your shop on Tuesday and your competitors are going to start sneaking up on you,” he said.

Google has forgotten why we loved it. It has degraded its premier product in service of promoting others

Mobile ad spending buoyed by sporting events, but slow video streams still deter content usage

eMarketer forecasts mobile ad spending in the UK will grow 63.7% to $314.7 million in 2012, as more consumers use their mobile phones for online entertainment on the go. Flagpole events like the 2012 Olympics in London and the UEFA Euro 2012 soccer tournament will boost display and video usage, and with it ad spending, on mobiles in the country.

Only 16% of consumers are positive about their data being used for targeted advertising, according to Deloitte’s Media Democracy report.