eBay and PayPal gear for mobile commerce growth in 2013
Online retail giant eBay saw major gains during the 2012 holiday shopping season, largely due to the company’s focus on mobile commerce. eBay is predicting that its mobile payment volume in 2013 will reach new heights as it puts more focus on engaging consumers with mobile commerce services. eBay notes that PayPal, one of its primary subsidiaries, will have a large role to play in the mobile commerce growth the company is expecting to see in the coming year.
eBay predicts mobile payment volume to exceed $20 billion
eBay is expecting to see mobile payment volume grow to more than $20 billion in 2013. PayPal is expected to handle the majority, if not the entirety, of this mobile payment volume, similar to what the company had done during the 2012 holidays. In 2012, eBay reported some $14 billion in total revenue for the entire year, up 21% of the revenue the company had generated in 2011. The company notes that one of the contributing factors to this growth was its focus on mobile commerce.
Company works on streamlining mobile services
In 2012, eBay mobile accounted for $13 billion in volume, according to CEO John Donahoe. The company’s various mobile applications attracted more than 4 million new users throughout the year, adding significant clout to the company’s already formidable presence in the mobile space. eBay is now working to streamline its mobile ventures, hoping to make them more accommodating of new customers and to bolster the mobile commerce services the company has to offer.
Consumers show interest in mobile commerce
PayPal is expected to add significant momentum to the mobile commerce plans of eBay. Consumers mostly had a positive experience with mobile commerce during the 2012 holidays, so eBay is likely to push for similar results near the end of this year. These consumers have shown their interest in shopping and making purchases using their mobile devices, thus setting up a great deal of promise for the 2013 holiday season.
Mobile commerce set for aggressive growth, according to Forrester Research
Forrester Research, a leading market research firm, has released a new report concerning the performance of mobile commerce in 2012. Last year, more consumers made purchases from their mobile devices than ever before. This may be due to the larger number of people with mobile devices or the more comprehensive mobile commerce services that they have access to. Whatever the case may be, the report shows that mobile commerce had a strong showing throughout 2012, and this momentum is likely to carry the sector to new heights in the future.
Report shows proximity payments drive mobile commerce growth
According to Forrester Research, mobile commerce accounted for $12.84 billion in mobile payments by the end of 2012.The report divides mobile payments into three categories: Mobile proximity payments, peer-to-peer payments, and retail mobile commerce. The report shows that proximity payments, those powered by NFC technology, were one of the most popular ways for consumers to pay for products in physical stores. The report also shows that QR codes used to facilitate mobile transactions were also well received by consumers.
Mobile transactions to grow by 601% by the end of 2017
Forrester Research predicts that the mobile commerce sector will account for more than $90.5 billion in transactions by the end of 2017, a 601% increase over the transactions the sector had seen last year. NFC technology is still a major part of mobile commerce, so proximity payments are likely to continue being a popular option for consumers. Some parties are looking to move away from the technology, however, due to concerns regarding the security of a consumer’s financial information.
Some look for alternatives to NFC technology
Companies like Apple and PayPal are looking for alternative to NFC technology. Both companies are currently developing their own solutions, with PayPal’s mobile wallet service proving to be a somewhat popular alternative. The majority of the companies involved in mobile commerce, however, support NFC technology and its ability to facilitate mobile payments and keep consumers safe from exploitation.
