Tag: mobile world congress

Samsung may be preparing to show off its new payments platform

Samsung may be planning to reveal its new mobile payments platform as early as next week. The company is expected to unveil the platform at the upcoming Mobile World Congress. The company is speculated to have partnered with Visa to develop the new service, which is called Samsung Pay. The new platform could serve as direct competition with Apple Pay, which has managed to establish a strong foothold in the mobile payments sector in the United States.

NFC technology will continue to be supported in the mobile commerce space

Samsung has shown significant interest in mobile transactions in the past. Many of the company’s smartphones are equipped with NFC technology. This technology can be used for various purposes, such as engaging with dynamic marketing and sharing digital media with other NFC-enabled devices. NFC does comprise the backbone of most mobile payments services, however, making it one of the foundational technologies in the mobile commerce space. Samsung is expected to roll out the service alongside the launch of its new smartphone, the Galaxy 6, which will also be equipped with NFC technology.

Samsung Pay will not only support NFC-based mobile payments

Though much of the mobile payments space is governed by NFC technology, Samsung Pay may not be exclusive to those with NFC-enabled devices. The new platform is expected to be able to support mobile transactions even without utilizing NFC technology. This could make it more accommodating to consumers that do not have NFC-enabled devices and make it more accessible to the retail industry as a whole. Retailers without NFC-enable point-of-sale systems would be able to accept transactions made through Samsung Pay.

Samsung Pay could become significant competition for Apple Pay in the coming months

Rumors suggest that Samsung Pay will be compatible with as much as 90% of the point-of-sale systems that are being used by retailers currently. If this is true, this would make it more accessible than Apple Pay, which supports only NFC-based transactions. Samsung Pay could, therefore, become a major competitor to Apple Pay.

Despite the fact that the majority of these mobile devices are ugly and limited, wearers adore them.

It is no mystery that smartwatches are taking off like wildfire, as they were the focus of all of the top headlines from the Mobile World Congress at the end of February, but what is striking to many is that these geeky, limited devices are becoming just as popular among consumers as they are among manufacturers.

This has caused analysts and tech experts to ask themselves where the true appeal of these gadgets lies.

While some more attractive models are now being released, until very recently, smartwatches looked like something straight from a bad made for T.V. sci-fi movie. Still, that hasn’t seemed to stop manufacturers from pumping them out and it hasn’t halted consumers from considering them the newest must-have accessory. These additional mobile screens are being seen a little bit of everywhere, whether they are from Pebble, Sony, Samsung, SPOT, Fossill, or any number of other players (other than Apple, who hasn’t arrived in this market, yet).

What is the secret to the way that smartwatches have won over the public?

These wearable technology devices did receive the first wave of attention from early tech adopters. That said, many of this demographic instantly fell in love with their new accessories. It gave them the chance to experiment with the latest types of products on the market while taking advantage of a whole new line of features and conveniences.

However, over the last handful of months, the interest in this type of wearable smart technology has suddenly taken off, far beyond that limited niche. This is particularly true among devices that offer fitness tracking features and apps. Suddenly, these mobile devices are no longer being lumped into the same category as the taped glasses and pocket protector cliché. Instead, they are being seen as mainstream and quite fashionable.

This shift in attitude toward smartwatches is expected to be a massive driver for the sale of these devices, which will only be expanded as next generations of the devices are launched based on the features and capabilities that consumers show that they value the most. Of course, the anticipated release of the iWatch before the end of the year will also be worth watching.