The company has made yet another purchase that has moved it further into the smartphone advertising sphere.
IBM has just announced that its purchasing spree has continued with its acquisition of Xtify, a mobile marketing company, which it has obtained for an undisclosed sum.
The company explained that the deal would give digital advertisers better interaction opportunities.
IBM explained that it would help mobile marketing companies to be able to increase their ability for interaction with consumers over mobile platforms through the use of in-app capabilities. This involves options such as running competitions, alerting customers regarding new promotions, and adding content to the apps themselves. The technology will be available within the Smarter Commerce offerings suite from IBM.
The acquisition of Xtify brings IBM mobile marketing for a number of sizeable customers.
Along with the purchase of mobile marketing opportunities with Xtify, IBM will also be receiving a number of that smaller company’s notable customers, which include 20th Century Fox and Disney Stores.
The vice president for digital marketing at IBM, Kevin Bishop, explained that the track record at Xtify for meeting agendas for mobile marketing is an ideal complement to the portfolio of offerings that are already available at IBM. He said that “With the increase of mobile devices, organisations across all industries are anxious to develop a mobile approach to engage their customers. The acquisition of Xtify provides new ways for our clients to foster a direct, one-to-one communication channel with their customers.”
The CEO of Xtify, Josh Rochlin, stated that he felt that bringing his company into IBM will provided them with the chance to meet a far wider range of customer needs than has ever been possible for that business. He said that the capability for mobile marketing and messaging at Xtify, in combination with the cloud infrastructure and analytics at IBM will give marketers a tremendous arsenal of rich content at with a global reach for informing and influencing a growing number of consumers who regularly use smartphones and tablets.
He went on to point out that the best time to provide mobile marketing content to customers is at exactly the time and place that they are seeking it. This acquisition greatly enhances ad relevancy.
Internet Retailer, a market research and strategic analysis firm, has released data that suggests mobile commerce in the U.S. will see strong growth by the end of 2013. The data shows that 500 of the largest mobile commerce businesses in the country have been reporting strong results over the past several quarters. More consumers are showing interest in mobile payments as the services available to them find alternatives to NFC technology and become more secure.
Data estimates 71% growth in mobile sales
According to the data from Internet Retailer, mobile commerce in the U.S. could grow by 63% by the end of the year. Mobile sales processed by the country’s top mobile commerce companies are expected to jump 71% by the end of 2013, surpassing $30 billion. E-commerce giant eBay is expected to see mobile sales rise above $8.8 billion as more consumers opt to shop from their mobile devices than on PCs or in physical stores.
Retailers begin taking mobile commerce more seriously
Retailers around the world are beginning to understand that the mobile space is not something to be ignored. Mobile commerce is not simply a passing trend and consumers are not likely to give up shopping on their smartphones and tablets any time soon. Retailers that are slow to embrace mobile commerce could be missing out on a significant opportunity and run the risk of being left behind by consumers that are demanding better mobile services. Companies like eBay and Amazon have shown just how beneficial a focus on the mobile sector can be.
Security remains a top concern for many consumers
Mobile commerce has grown significantly in a few short years, but the sector is still in a state of infancy. While many consumers have shown interest in mobile payments, many more have expressed concern regarding the security of their financial information. Security concerns have been enough to keep people away from mobile commerce platforms regardless of the security features that these platforms boast of.
