Tag: mobile payments

Mobile commerce competition heats up in China

| March 12, 2014

Tencent and Alibaba are beginning to compete more aggressively for the favor of mobile consumers throughout China

China has become a battlefield when it comes to mobile commerce competition. Two of the country’s largest companies, Tencent and Alibaba, have a longstanding rivalry with one another when it comes to engaging consumers. Both companies are beginning to focus on the mobile space more heavily as well. While Tencent has held a strong presence in the mobile space for some time, Alibaba is beginning to threaten that position by promoting and supporting mobile commerce throughout China.

Firm predicts the future of the mobile payments market in China

Internet consultancy firm iResearch has released a forecast concerning the mobile commerce market in China. According to the forecast, the market is expected to reach nearly $300 billion by 2017, with more than half of online payments being made from a smartphone or other mobile device. Mobile payments will likely continue growing in popularity as more people gain access to the mobile Internet. The popularity of mobile payments has encouraged companies like Tencent and Alibaba to embrace the mobile commerce sector more aggressively.

Tencent powers ahead with its WeChat application and new services

Mobile Commerce Competition Heats UpTencent recently launched a new service for merchants through its WeChat application. The service allows merchants to accept mobile payments through the application, thereby enabling them to become more engaging for mobile consumers. Alibaba has its own mobile payments platform called Alipay, which has managed to accommodate more online transactions than both eBay and Amazon combined. These applications are poised to compete aggressively with one another, but Chinese consumers have yet to show their favor for one over the other.

Tencent may have what it takes to attract the support of China’s merchants

Tencent is expected to have an edge with merchants that are looking to get involved in the mobile space. WeChat is one of the most popular applications in the world and is quite well known in China. The popularity of this application among consumers may be enough to convince merchants that it is the best platform for their mobile commerce interests.

 

Security and privacy are big issues in the mobile commerce space

| March 10, 2014

SAP suggests that security and privacy are two of the most significant problems in the mobile sector

Software firm SAP sees security and privacy as two major issues when it comes to using big data in the mobile sector. Big data is a term that is used to identify the large amounts of unstructured data that businesses accumulate. This data is comprised of information regarding consumers and is typically collected by retailers without the express consent of customers. Security and privacy have become very controversial issues in recent years, partly due to the fact that people are becoming more reliant on mobile technology in their daily lives.

Survey shows that big data continues to be a high value resource for retailers

According to a recent survey conducted by SAP, many mobile industry groups believe that big data and retail go hand in hand. The survey shows that some 36% of industry groups believe that real-time offers coming from retailers engaged in the mobile commerce space will drive up the value of big data. This data is often used to design more effective marketing strategies and connect with consumers more aggressively.

Personal information is often collected from consumers without express consent

Mobile Commerce and Mobile SecurityThe problem with big data, however, is that much of it is acquired without consent. Consumers often visit websites where they can shop online and in doing so they typically agree to have their information collected but are never made aware of such an agreement. This can quickly become a serious problem for retailers as consumers become more concerned over their own privacy and how their personal information is being used by businesses.

Mobile operators and banks may offer ideal mobile payments support

The survey from SAP does not focus entirely on security and privacy, of course. The survey shows that many mobile industry groups have high hopes for mobile commerce in the future. Many of these groups believe that mobile network operators are ideally positioned to provide effective mobile payments platforms for consumers. Banks are also considered to be well situated to address many of the security issues that exist within the realm of mobile commerce due to the numerous regulations they must comply with.