Mobile payments are widely seen as a promising market and In-Stat predicts that by 2015, more than 375 million users will pay stuff using their mobile phones. That’s an increase from this year’s forecasted 116 million mobile payments users.
According to market analyst Amy Cravens, there is a consumer demand for mobile payments. However due to pain points included with current systems, they [consumers] are reluctant to use such services. Amy goes on suggesting that if mobile operators are able to push beyond the infrastructural challenges and introduce mobile payments to the mass market, the transactional value of the market can grow nearly tenfold over the next several years.
Some other research findings that indicate the market’s preparedness include:
- Significant smartphone penetration.
- Consumer comfort level with purchasing goods with their phone through existing channels.
- A desire among mobile operators to develop opportunities to generate revenue from mobile based commerce.
- Infrastructural developments supporting contactless payments, including NFC-enabled mobile phones and POS terminals.
As usual additional details are available from In-Stat’s report titled “Mobile Payments Worldwide: Is the Market Ready?”