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Consumer mobile commerce behaviors change throughout Europe

| April 5, 2016

Smartphone based shopping habits differ from one country to the next, according to a study across 11 markets.

German affiliate marketing network, Zanox, has conducted a data analysis across the 11 international primarily European markets in which it functions, in order to understand the mobile commerce behaviors of the people who live there.

What it determined was that there is actually quite a difference in the way m-commerce is used.

When looking at these habits from one country to the next, consumers use mobile commerce as a different part of their shopping behaviors. What the study revealed was that the United Kingdom and many of the Nordic countries use this technology the most frequently, while Switzerland records the smallest number of mobile transactions. That said, at the same time, Switzerland produces the highest average order value, particularly when it comes to the online travel industry.

This mobile commerce data was released as a part of the Zanox mobile Performance Barometer bi-annual report.

Mobile Commerce Behaviors in EuropeThe markets that were included within this report were the United Kingdom, Spain, Austria, Switzerland, Eastern Europe, Benelux, Italy, the Nordic countries, Germany and France.

There were some notable differences that were found to occur from one country or market to the next. For instance, in Spain, there is a traditional summer break that spans from July through September which affected consumer behaviors. During that same span of time, Italy saw a doubling of its transactions when compared to the activity they registered in March.

The periods in which countries traditionally take extended breaks and holidays were also those in which there were the strongest travel bookings made over mobile shopping channels. The increase in mobile sales was comparable in France and Eastern Europe, as they both reached a peak near the end of the year.

That said, throughout all the mobile commerce markets included in this study, there was a notable increase recorded. The boost in growth rates revealed that there has yet to be a maturation of the smartphone based shopping experience and that it continues to steadily develop, said the report that Zanox issued on its findings for the last half year.

New House bill could require ID for purchasing a burner phone

| April 4, 2016

In California, if a law should pass, it would mean people would need identification to legally buy a prepaid cellular phone.

A new bill has been put forward by House Representative Jackie Speier (D-San Francisco/San Mateo), that will require that proper identification be presented to retailers before they will be able to legally sell a burner phone – also known as a prepaid cell phone – to a consumer.

The bill has been named the “Closing the Pre-Paid Mobile Device Security Gap Act of 2016”.

The purpose of this burner phone bill is to “close one of the most significant gaps in our ability to track and prevent acts of terror, drug trafficking, and modern-day slavery,” said Speier. These prepaid devices are used by many different people throughout the country without any problem or ill intentions. However, they have also become a central method of communication among those who would do a great deal of harm such as in the case of terrorism, and drug and human trafficking.

If the regulation should become a law, identification would need to be presented when buying a burner phone.

Burner Phone - Image of Cell PhoneRetailers selling these prepaid mobile devices or SIM cards would be required to ask a consumer to present the following before a sale can be made:

• The purchaser’s full name
• The full home address of the consumer
• The buyer’s date of birth

The bill also specifies the types of identification that would be considered acceptable for purchasing these mobile devices and SIM cards. T hey include a Federal or State identification card, a W–2 Wage and Tax Statement, a Form 1099 from the Social Security Administration or other government agency or any other type of documentation that would be considered appropriate by the Attorney General.

The retailers selling the burner phone and/or SIM card must record the information that has been presented, along with the information specific to that mobile device. The hope is to be able to reduce the chances for anonymously owning a cell phone that can be used for dubious purposes and to make it more possible to track down the owner of a device that was evidence in a criminal case.