Author: Denny

New mobile payments system launched in Beijing

| April 18, 2013

Mobile Payments BeijingAlipay puts a new twist on mobile payments

Alipay, a leading third party online payment solution provider in China, has launched a new payment system in the Beijing Subway. The system is designed to accommodate those interested in mobile payments, allowing them to use their smartphones or tablets to pay for public transit tickets. Such a payment system is nothing new, especially in the realm of public transportation, but the way that Alipay’s system facilitates mobile payments certainly breaks away from the established norm.

System uses sound waves to facilitate payments

Alipay’s mobile payments system uses sound waves in order to facilitate mobile transactions. The system relies on the Alipaw wallet, a digital wallet application that was released in January of this year. The application emits white noise, which is registered by the payment system, which then initiates a transaction. This white noise mechanic was initially meant to facilitate peer-to-peer transactions, but Beijing Subway saw significant promise in the applications capabilities.

Alipay Wallet application heavily influenced by growing demand for mobile commerce services

The new system has been launched in two stations in the Beijing Subway. More systems are expected to be installed throughout the subway network in the near future. Alipay notes that the growing importance of mobile payments in the lives of consumers was a strong inspiration for the development of this new payment system. The Alipay Wallet application is available to both Android and iOS consumers, but the latter group is noted as a major contributor to the development of the application’s sound-based mechanics.

Application meant to make mobile commerce more accommodating to iOS consumers

NFC technology has long been a cornerstone of mobile payments, but this technology is not available for iOS devices due to Apple’s disapproval of the technology. As such, iOS consumers have had to rely on alternatives in order to participate in mobile commerce. The sound-based features of the Alipay Wallet are meant to make it possible for iOS consumers to make mobile payments easily without having to worry about having access to NFC technology.

Mobile games reach new heights in China

| April 15, 2013

China mobile gamesChina Mobile sees major progress in mobile games

Mobile games continue to generate a great deal f attention in China. This week, China Mobile, one of the country’s largest  telecommunications companies, announced that 25% of the applications downloaded from its Mobile Market app store were games. Moreover, these mobile games account for the vast majority of the revenue generated from all of the applications found on the company’s Mobile Market. This makes the mobile games sector the most lucrative sector in the mobile space, at least in China.

Majority of revenue in app market comes from games

According to China Mobile, mobile games represent 87.5% of total revenue earned by the Mobile Market. These games are rampantly popular among Chinese consumers, many of whom use them for entertainment purposes or, quite simply, to pass the time. China Mobile notes that the number of people willing to pay for mobile games is significantly higher than those willing to pay for games on other platforms. Up to 30% of mobile consumers, for instance, have paid or are willing to pay for mobile games of some kind, whereas 1-2% of consumers are willing to pay for PC games.

In-app purchases are becoming more common

China Mobile also notes that consumers are willing to have the fees tied to their mobile games included in their regular phone bill, with approximately 70% of mobile gamers favoring this practice. In-app purchases have also become the stable of the mobile games sector in China, with 90% of all games in the Mobile Market offering some form of in-app purchase. China Mobile expects that in-app purchases will eventually replace the pay-to-download model that has long dominated the applications market, leading most, if not all, mobile games to be free.

China sees economic growth in games

Mobile games have become a strong force in the Chinese economy. For several years, China’s game industry has been somewhat isolated, largely restricted to the borders of its native country. Despite this, the industry has become very affluent in the economy by providing consumers with countless hours of entertainment.