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Internet brands like Google and Yahoo are gaining ground on the telcos. The The Kelsey Group and research partner ConStat conduct a “Mobile Market View” study, the latest of which basically says that potential mobile phone purchasers are increasingly more likely to purchase a mobile phone branded by an Internet company. That said, the telcos still own the space. Marketing Charts has some nice charts.  Below are some highlights from the study…

“The gap between the carriers (Verizon and AT&T) and the internet and technology companies was much smaller than expected, suggesting potentially wide acceptance of portal-branded phones, should they come to market,” said Matt Booth, SVP and program director, Interactive Local Media, The Kelsey Group.

“It makes sense that features that are typically associated with internet and technology companies are of high importance to consumers for their mobile devices.”

In addition, 45% of US mobile phone users surveyed said a mobile phone with better internet capability would be a key factor in their next mobile phone purchase decision.

Only 26% of mobile phone service subscribers currently opt for an internet access plan, according to the survey.

Survey respondents also ranked the importance of six mobile internet-related capabilities:

• Better connectivity to other devices (54%) and improved ability to store and look at photos (51%) received the highest importance ratings.
• Next were ability to access the internet more easily (45%) and listen to music or other audio content (34%).
• The ability to play games (25%) and watch TV or internet videos (20%) were cited by fewer respondents.