Tag: mobile payments technology

Mobile Technology and its Impact on Society

Society is becoming more mobile-centric on a seemingly daily basis. Smartphones and tablets are playing bigger roles in people’s daily lives, and this is becoming especially true as businesses and social organizations begin to become more mobile-centric themselves. The idea of mobility is quite attractive. In the past, people could only access the Internet and digital services from their desktop computers. Now, access to the digital world is everywhere and this constant connection has had a major impact on society as a whole.

Because of a constant connection to the Internet, people are generally more informed of a wide range of issues and are able to access information concerning global and local events. The advent of mobile technology has also enabled people to change the way they shop for products and engage with their friends and families. Technology has changed the way that society works within itself very quickly over the past few decades and new changes are beginning to occur as technology begins to play a more central role in the lives of people throughout the world.

One of the most apparent changes that technology is having on the world can be seen in the field of commerce. While people are still quite comfortable with paying for goods and services with physical currencies, they are growing more interested in the concept of mobile commerce. As such, many people are beginning to shop from their smartphones and tablets, purchasing products from these devices when they can find deals on products that they like.mobile technology and society

Mobile commerce may soon come to define the retail sector and have major influence over how businesses connect with consumers. Many retailers are already working to engage mobile consumers more effectively. This involves them establishing a more active and prominent digital presence, something that retailers have not had to do in the past. Even companies like eBay and Amazon, which have a very powerful digital presence, are having to find new ways to engage mobile-centric people. There is, however, no definitive way to engage mobile consumers and find success. Because mobile commerce is a very fluid concept, consumers can quickly move from one retailer to the next, or from service to service, with relative ease.

The role of technology is society is ever changing and it is difficult to say for certain how technology will impact the world as a whole. Mobile technology has certainly had a measurable impact, especially over the past decade. This impact may become more pronounced as people become more reliant on technology.

Mobile payments acquisition of Caviar made by Square

This purchase will open up the opportunity for smartphone transactions in food delivery.

Caviar, a startup business that provides meal deliveries from high end restaurants, has now announced that it has been acquired by mobile payments company, Square, broadening the opportunities available to both organizations.

This will provide people who order their meals through the service with a new way to pay.

The option offered by Caviar, itself, is quite appealing to many consumers, who would like to have prepared gourmet dishes delivered to their offices or homes, as opposed to the quick delivery options that are currently available. That said, the acquisition by Square will bring an entirely new level of technology to the service, as these customers will be able to use mobile payments to be able to purchase their meals.

The acquisition by the mobile payments company is expected to be a deal worth about $90 million.

Mobile Payments acquisitionWhile Square started out as a company founded by Jack Dorsey (of Twitter fame) and Jim McKelvey in 2009, that provided card reader dongles that turned smartphones and tablets into devices that could process transactions, it has progressed quite a distance since then. The company is always working to expand itself, as its revenue margins are quite slim (at 2.75 percent per transaction) even when taking into account that over 50,000 restaurants use the service. Last year, the company lost $100 million, and it is believed to be continuing to blast its way through cash.

A Yankee Group senior analyst, Jordan McKee, explained that “Initially Square’s business model focused on the low volume merchant, so scaling is certainly very difficult.” He went on to say that “Now, we’ve seen Square trying to find ways to generate sustainable revenues.”

As a part of this effort Square has spent the last year launching a number of additional mobile payments tools and services in order to better serve its client base as it opens up new streams of revenue. Among them, are Square Capital, which provides merchants with cash advances in the form of an interest loan, and Square Cash, which allows for rapid money transfers via email.