Category: Mobile Commerce

Mobill aims to bring mobile payments to India

| March 9, 2013

Mobile Payments IndiaMobill teams with Sterna Security to promote mobile payments services in India

Swedish mobile commerce firm Mobill has announced that it will be establishing a new development center in India. The company has teamed with Sterna Security, a mobile security solutions firm based in India, to develop a new mobile payments system for the Indian market. India is quickly becoming a very attractive market in terms of mobile payments, due to the growing number of people that have access to mobile devices like smartphones and tablets. Mobill is interested in establishing a strong presence in the market to take advantage of the growing popularity of mobile consumers among Indian consumers.

Mobile commerce sees growing demand from Indian consumers

Mobile payments are considered a more convenient form of commerce for many people in India and consumers have been demanding for new commerce services in the country for some time. Mobill believes that the market is ready for a new generation of mobile payments solutions that can be used to purchase goods and services. Mobill is expected to put much of its efforts in the Indian market on the country’s public transportation system. The company claims that 80% of Sweden’s public transit operators make use of its M-Ticket service, which distributes digital tickets to commuters throughout the country in an efficient manner.

Security to be a major focus for Mobill

Security will be a major focus for Mobill, especially as the company looks to establish a foothold in the Indian market. Mobile payments are not just growing in popularity among Indian consumers, they are also becoming attractive targets for hackers. Mobile devices are beginning to traffic a large amount of financial information, which can be stolen and exploited by malicious parties. In teaming with Sterna Security, Mobill aims to address the mobile security concerns it has in regards to Indian mobile payments.

Mobill expected to compete with others in attractive Indian market

Because India has become a very attractive mobile commerce market, Mobill is expected to see competition from other companies looking to promote mobile payments services among consumers. Google is currently the largest competitor in the field of mobile commerce. Despite Google’s seemingly all encompassing presence, many consumers have shown their willingness to make use of mobile commerce services offered by other companies, which may bode well for Mobill’s future in India.

Mobile games benefit from freemium model

| March 9, 2013

Mobile Games FreemiumFreemium makes mobile games a booming market

Mobile games have become a very prominant market for the game industry. Games for smartphones and tablets represent a market worth billions of dollars in revenue and this market has begun to attract game developers that had previously been focused exclusively on developing titles for consoles and PCs. Though mobile games generate a massive amount of revenue on a yearly basis, most of these games are entirely free, though boast of a wide variety of in-game transactions. This business model is often referred to as “freemium.”

In-game transactions relatively accepted by gamers

Freemium is a simple concept: Mobile games that are free to obtain and free to play, but provide gamers with the opportunity to purchase in-game items and power-ups that can make the game more enjoyable. This is where the majority of the revenue that is generated by mobile games comes from. The freemium model allows developers to offer services to gamers for a relatively low price and because these prices are so low, consumers tend to participate in in-game transactions on a regular bases.

Freemium opens mobile games to more consumers

Analysts from Index Ventures, a venture capital investment firm, suggest that the freemium model is ideal for the mobile games market. This model allows developers to price-discriminate individual consumers, eliminating the upfront costs that are associated with other business models. A typical console game can cost anywhere from $30 to $60, but most mobile games are offered for free, with additional content being offered for as little as $1. Index Ventures suggests that the freemium model does not exploit consumers, but rather allows for a broader consumer base to participate in mobile games.

Business model not accepted by all gamers

Index Ventures suggests that many consumers are willing to sink money into mobile games in order to gain as much entertainment from these games as possible. The freemium model may be great for developers, but it is not universally accepted among gamers. Many argue that the freemium model encourages developers and publishers to create games that are deliberately restrictive in order to heavily promote in-game transactions.