Tag: mobile wallets

As mobile commerce continues to thrive, digital wallets are becoming more important

Mobile wallets may soon be the way of the future. A growing number of applications that are designed specifically to store financial information and data provided by retailers are emerging in the mobile space. These apps are thriving in the popularity of mobile commerce, finding support among consumers that want to pay for products using nothing more than their smartphones and tablets. For Visa and MasterCard, the mobile wallet holds a great deal of promise, but both companies are finding it difficult to engage mobile consumers effectively.

Visa is trying to form a direct connection with consumers

Both Visa and MasterCard have their own mobile commerce services on offer. Visa’s Checkout service was introduced in July and is meant to replace the company’s old digital wallet. Using the service, consumers will be able to pay for goods and services using data on their mobile devices. Visa is using its marketing clout to promote this new mobile wallet, but whether or not the service will prove popular among consumers has yet to be seen. Visa is currently struggling to form a direct connection with consumers, having focused so heavily on its relationship with businesses.

MasterCard wants businesses to integrate its digital wallet

MasterCard is offering a similar service with its MasterPass platform. The MasterPass application is meant to help make e-commerce more convenient to consumers, but MasterCard is not likely to try to form a direct connection with people using the app. Instead, the company is likely to continue focusing its efforts on providing services to its business partners, allowing them to connect with mobile consumers more dynamically. For MasterCard, creating something new is not the priority. The company wants to see its MasterPass service integrated into existing platforms.

Mobile wallets could be the key to omnichannel engagement

Merchants are working to adapt to the idea of omnichannel engagement. In a world where mobile technology has become so prominent, this has proven to be a difficult task. Connecting with mobile consumers is a complicated issue, but mobile wallets may be the key to success in this endeavor. In the coming years, more people are likely to be engaged in mobile commerce, and they will need digital wallets to make their experiences enjoyable.

The web based Hive Wallet was first announced in March but has now been released.

Although the Hive mobile wallet was still seeking developers and was little more than a well thought out concept, four months ago, since that time they have not only managed to find the skilled individuals that they needed, but they have also reached the point that they have now released the product.

The entire concept of paying over smartphones and tablets is still a new one that is slowly catching on with consumers.

This mobile wallet is unique in that it is based on HTML5, available on the web instead of requiring an app download. By visiting the URL for the first time, the user is given the choice to either create a new wallet or to open an existing one. Similar to brainwallet, Hive Wallet requires a twelve word passphrase in order to create a new one. Moreover, security is then taken an additional step further by requiring the user to assign a PIN.

Once the mobile wallet has been created, it can be used with a sleek, minimalist design.

This is key because the user will need to be able to access all of its elements rapidly in order to use it to complete transactions. There are three options clearly laid out for users of the site, including the receipt of bitcoin, sending that digital currency, and viewing their transaction history.

This service supports digital currencies (also known as cryptocurrencies) such as Bitcoin and Litecoin and it is looking to add Dogecoin in the near future. Over the long term, the company is hoping to be able to add a range of different digital currencies from which the wallet users can choose.

One feature that is already being applauded is called “waggle”, which broadcasts a user’s public key to other users of the wallet who are located nearby. By doing this, in person transactions can be completed seamlessly, without the requirement for NFC tag taps or QR code scans. That said, because this mobile wallet is based on HTML5, it should be noted that it is not compatible with iBeacon.