ABI Research have released news that they believe users of mobile social networking will rise to more than 170 million by 2011, up from the estimated 50 million now.

"The rapid rise of online social communities - gathering places such as MySpace and Facebook - has done more than bring the 'pen pal' concept into the 21st century," says vice president of research Clint Wheelock. "It has created a new paradigm for personal networking. In a logical progression, many social communities are now based on the mobile phone and other portable wireless devices instead of (or as well as) the PC. Such mobile social communities extend the reach of electronic social interaction to millions of people who don't have regular or easy access to computers."

Via MocoNews.