A leading authority on Internet standards and policy recently released a report which found that the use of mobile devices have “fundamentally transformed” Internet use around the world.

Business Wire reports that the Internet Society (ISoc) released its second annual Global Internet Report this month. The report showed that Internet users are increasingly turning to mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets to access the Internet rather than the traditional desktop or laptop. In fact, for hundreds of millions of people around the world, mobile devices are their primary (and sometimes only) means of going online.

“We applaud this global shift in the Internet dynamic, with mobile playing a significant role in the rapid pace of new Internet users,” said ISoc President and CEO Kathy Brown. “The Internet is truly global and every new user online benefits other users, for social interaction, economic opportunities and many other benefits that were previously unimaginable.”

However, the report was careful in not showering too much praise on mobile access, considering several problems still exist with Internet usage. For example, affordability and the lack of relevant content are two major obstacles million of people face when accessing the World Wide Web. Furthermore, the availability of mobile-based Internet services outpace actual mobile users, meaning that people who can access the Internet cannot do so on their mobile devices.

The report highlighted the fact that in several countries, the cost of using the Internet on a mobile device is 5 – 10% more than the average per capita income. Despite this, more than 13% of total Internet traffic comes from mobile use.

In addition, the report found that apps are the primary means of accessing the Internet on mobile devices. There are several benefits as well as several challenges that come with this. For example, most apps only work on a particular platform such as Android or Apple, which is a problem for developers who want to make apps for all platforms.