Author: Dan Gendro

Mobile commerce subject to government investigation

The Australian government has launched an inquiry concerning the experiences consumers are having with downloading applications and applications used to make purchases from mobile devices. Mobile commerce has been growing in popularity in Australia for some time. The country is serving as host to several mobile commerce initiatives, including those coming from the Commonwealth Bank, one of the largest financial groups in the country. The growing popularity of mobile commerce has created a sense of unease from the Commonwealth Consumer Affairs Advisory Council, however, which is concerned for the quality of service and security of consumer financial information.

Simplicity of mobile apps to be investigated

The government agency is to investigate the quality of mobile application downloads to determine whether they are more complicated than they need to be. Some consumers have been issuing complaints regarding the overly complicated nature of some mobile applications, claiming that they are confusing and, at times, misleading. While app downloads are a matter for investigation, the government is much more concerned with in-app purchases.

Consumers raise complaints over in-app purchases

Mobile payments are often a sensitive issue, especially in terms of security. While many consumers have shown interest in making payments through their mobile devices, this can be dangerous and puts their financial information at risk. In regards to in-app payments, the Commonwealth Consumers Affairs Advisory Council notes that consumers are experiencing a great deal of frustration from ramping costs that they cannot easily manage through certain applications. These applications could present a financial threat to some consumers.

Public consultation period to begin within weeks

Consumers and companies operating within the mobile commerce industry are being invited to share their input on the matter with the Australian government. The Commonwealth Consumer Affairs Advisory Council will be opening up the inquiry for a public consultation period within the coming weeks, hoping to attain a more in-depth understanding of the problems consumers are having with mobile applications and mobile commerce in general.

Smartphones have become pervasive in China, where data from September 2011 has shown that the number of mobile phone users broke the 940 million mark, and where over half of the new device users are opting for 3G devices. Now, in 2012, China holds the largest share of mobile phone market and is experiencing the most competitive challenges within smartphone sector.

As a result, much of the world is looking to China mobile trends as the gauge of mobile progress, and is seeing mobile gaming as a vital element of the growth of the industry, and that will also be responsible for the majority of the revenue in that part of the world.

Firms and mobile app developers around the world are looking to China to take their own piece of the mobile pie. To do this, they are also paying close attention to the predictions that are being made about the mobile environment in that region. So far, they included the following predictions for 2012:

• Before the close of the year, China will break the 100 million mark for the number of smartphones being used in the country

• All three major Chinese telecom carriers will offer support of Apple’s iOS

• The market for game distribution in China will continue to divide until there will be more than 100 independent channels

• The most popular smartphones in China will be those based on Android

• The top source of mobile game revenue will come from in-game purchases

Though analysts, economists, and other experts may have yet to decide whether or not China will become the world’s next superpower, and when that may occur, what is difficult to doubt is that in the mobile gaming world, the country will already have reached its position as confirmed leader by the end of this year.

Not just China Mobile Trends Anymore – What all companies should know about m-commerce

The companies that will be seeing the greatest successes over the next few years have realized that mobile is here and it is heating up, and that the earlier they take part in it, the better the results will be.

Even better than the popularity of mobile is that m-commerce is also on the rise. Business leaders such as CEOs are now being required to find out about the latest trends and movements in mobile, so that their own companies will be able to stay ahead of the game.

The following are some points that every company should know about m-commerce:

Mobile has arrived – this isn’t a channel that is just about to get here. It’s already here, and it is expected to explode at any moment. Almost half of all Americans now have a smartphone, and most expert predictions are saying that by 2015, the spending using those mobile devices will be 8 percent greater than that generated by e-commerce.

• M-commerce is becoming mainstream – it is becoming the norm for the average consumer to make purchases using their mobile devices. Whether they buy the items online, or use the devices to make the payments in-store, the incorporation of the device into the purchasing process is becoming mainstream.

• Mobile payments does not yet have a leader – though there are many different companies vying for the top spot of the mobile payments marketplace, that position has yet to be claimed. It isn’t expected that the winner will be known before the end of this year.

• Privacy is key – one of the top concerns that smartphone owners have identified is with regards to privacy. Being respectful of this will be critical to the success of mobile efforts both this year and beyond.