Tag: mobile payments platform

There is a rapidly growing interest in that country for paying through the use of a smartphone.

In response to the growing interest in mobile payments and money services among the Nigerian people, Fortumo has now launched its latest product, which allows for these transactions within that West African nation.

The connectivity rates and the smartphone based money services in the country are now widely available.

In fact, there are now an estimated 114 million smartphone and other device users who have access to mobile payments across Nigeria. At the moment, the penetration of smartphones among all cell phone users still remains quite low, but Fortumo has taken that into consideration in the design of the services that it has launched in order to cater to nearly anyone who has a mobile device.

A special mobile payments platform that will even work for feature phones has been designed.

Even though most people in Nigeria do not have a smartphone, Fortumo has built a “special flow” for its cross-platform “mobile payments for feature phones.” This helps the company to be able to provide these services to the majority of the population that use devices without all of the latest bells and whistles.

At the moment, in the country, the smartphone based internet is still in the lead. In fact, 75 percent of all subscriptions to internet services are managed by way of smartphone based platforms. This represents approximately 35 million users. Only one quarter of all of the cell phones in Nigeria are currently smartphones.

Nigeria has made itself an important mobile payments services marketplace in Africa, as it has made specific efforts to use this technology to enhance the ease and convenience with which people can exchange funds or pay for the products and services they want to buy. It is the hope that the use of cell phones as opposed to credit cards or debits for bank accounts – or even cash, for that matter – will help to give the local economy a much needed shot in the arm, and to empower users with additional options for shopping in person or online.

Apple unveils iPhone 5S and 5C

Apple revealed its highly anticipated iPhone 5S this week during a special press event, but the famed technology company also unveiled some unexpected products as well. Apple has been fighting to maintain its market share in the mobile sector for some time, and this fight has became more desperate when long-time rival Samsung took the top spot in the global market. In an effort to boost device sales, Apple unveiled the iPhone 5C, which is meant to be a low-end smartphone designed to appeal to the world’s low-income populace.

New 5S could be a hint at Apple’s mobile payments interests

Apple’s event was enough to generate hype among long-time supporters of the company. The iPhone 5S has won praise for the new features it offers, the most notable of which is fingerprint sensor technology that could make the device much more secure than its predecessors. This technology could also help Apple break into the mobile payments space, which the company has been approaching with caution for some time. While Apple sees a great deal of promise in mobile payments, the company considers this sector to be somewhat dangerous due to the lackluster security features that some payment platforms offer.

Fingerprint technology may help make mobile payments more secure

While Apple has not yet made an announcement concerning its plans for mobile payments, the iPhone 5S could provide some insight on where the company is heading in this sector. Equipped with a fingerprint scanner, the iPhone 5S is able to function as the most secure mobile payments platform available. The technology is able to authorize payments more effectively than conventional platforms, many of which are based on NFC technology. Apple considered NFC technology to be lackluster for mobile payments because the technology is susceptible to hacking, putting a consumer’s financial information at risk.

5C designed for low-income consumers

The iPhone 5C and other models are not designed with mobile payments in mind. The 5C is meant to appeal to low-income consumers who have an interest in smartphones but not necessarily enough money to purchase cutting-edge models. The iPhone 5C is expected to retail for approximately $99, whereas the iPhone 5S will feature a significantly higher price tag.