Tag: mobile payments

Barclays research predicts growth in the Scottish mobile market

The Scottish mobile commerce market is expected to experience strong growth through 2019, according to research from Barclays. More consumers in the country are beginning to use their mobile devices to browse for products on the Internet. The demand for in-store support of mobile payments is also on the rise, as many people use their devices in stores to research products they are interested in purchasing. Over the next few years, the Scottish mobile commerce space is expected to grow by 224%.

Scottish consumers are spending more money through their mobile devices

The research from Barclays predicts that Scottish consumers will spend approximately $2.6 billion in the mobile commerce space ever year through 2019. Despite this growth in mobile spending, retailers in the country are not showing much interest in catering to mobile consumers. Some retailers see little need to purchase and install mobile point-of-sale systems, as mobile shoppers tend to prefer purchasing products over the Internet rather than in physical stores. The problem, however, is that retailers are also not eager to build mobile websites, which can support these shoppers more effectively.

Consumers are becoming starved for time

Approximately 45% of Scottish consumers use their mobile devices to browse for products on the Internet, with the most popular category of products among these consumers being clothing. Barclays suggests that one of the reasons more consumers are embracing mobile commerce is because they are becoming starved for time. Schedules are becoming more packed and consumers have less time to visit physical stores, but mobile devices allow them to do their shopping whenever they want to. This convenience has become one of the major attractors of the mobile commerce space.

Scottish companies are not ready for the mobile space

Retailers need to adapt to the changes being seen in the market in order to continue finding success. Approximately less than 3% of Scottish retailers are prepared to serve mobile consumers, with 70% lacking the mobile websites that can appeal to these consumers. Another 68% of retailers claimed that they do not have a clear plan to engage the mobile market.

This type of transaction for iPhone users has now been integrated into the InstaMed network.

At the same time that a growing number of people are using mobile apps to help them to keep tabs on their health and fitness habits and progress, it has now been announced that Apple Pay is now integrated into the InstaMed network, which will make it possible for policyholders to pay their health insurance premiums and even their copayments with their devices.

This represents yet another way in which mobile devices are making their way into the health care industry.

This will make it possible for anyone in the InstaMed network to be able to accept mobile payment options through Apple Pay users. This includes the consumer facing apps of health care providers, venders, and payers, alike. That transaction service is currently limited to customers who use the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, as well as the iPad mini 3, the iPad Air 2, and – very shortly – the Apple Watch. The goal is to help to reduce the confusion associated with paying this sort of bill and to make it more simple and convenient for customers.

Apple Pay is considered to be an exceptionally innovative mobile payments technology.

This helps to explain why it was the mobile payment program of choice for this network’s initial integration of the tech. According to the co-founder and CTO of InstaMed, Chris Seib, “Approximately 20 percent of consumers have unpaid health care bills as a result of confusion in the payments process. This will only grow as more and more consumers continue to enroll in high deductible health plans.”

Seib went on to explain that a technology as innovative as Apple’s mobile payments system has the capability to help to “resolve consumer confusion and rising bad debt” that has become highly problematic within the health care industry. He praised the security, simplicity and privacy of this payment process.

He also pointed out that beyond Apple Pay, mobile payments as a whole “are expected to reach $142 billion by 2019.” Therefore, he feels that it is important for the health care industry to leverage exactly this type of solution in order to be able to continue to meet the needs of consumers.