Tag: us mobile payments

The coffee giant is leading the way in this market as 10 percent of its American purchases use smartphones.

Despite the fact that Starbucks doesn’t have the most generous loyalty or reward programs around, it has most certainly been able to attract the largest number of people to its mobile payments program in the United States.

The minimalistic rewards program does not seem to be doing any damage to the willingness of its customers to pay with smartphones.

The company is continuing to draw new customers and a surprising number of them are using mobile payments to pay for their purchases, even in the United States, which is one of the markets in which the least growth and adoption have been seen. The café chain has continually broken the mold, not only by being successful with the transactions as a whole, but also by doing so using various different types of technique.

Mobile payments have seen considerable struggle with adoption in the United States.

Giants in the industry such as Isis and Google Wallet have essentially fallen flat, so far. Though Square is doing well, it requires mobile devices on the side of the seller, not the consumer. Starbucks, on the other hand, has experienced continual and rapid growth since it first introduced the transaction method.

Ten percent of all American transactions at Starbucks are currently completed using a smartphone. The company has been working very hard to be able to popularize mobile payments and it has managed to overcome the lack of trust that smartphone users have in the security of their devices by basing the system on rechargeable gift cards instead of relying the use of credit or debit cards through their devices.

That said, the actual reason behind the success of Starbucks mobile payments has yet to be identified. Though some have proposed the reward program associated with it, most would agree that it is not a very big incentive. Others feel that it is more convenient than paying through more traditional means. It has also been proposed that the demographic that buys coffee through that chain is also the same one that is more willing to give new technologies a try. Whatever it is, other American companies have yet to replicate it.

Mobile payments to see strong growth this year

Mobile payments are poised to see explosive growth in the U.S. this year. As more consumers show favor for shopping online using their mobile devices, their proclivity for mobile payments is beginning to show a dramatic increase. A new report from eMarketer, a leading market research firm, suggests that U.S. mobile payments will reach new heights this year and will continue to grow in the near future. Much of this growth is being driven by the focus businesses have been putting on mobile commerce.

Report highlights the future possibilities of the mobile commerce space

According to the report, U.S. mobile payments will surpass the $1 billion mark by the end of 2013. Mobile transactions will be coming from scanning codes with smartphones and tablets, using NFC-enabled devices, and by accessing e-commerce platforms through a device’s web browser. The report predicts that mobile payments will continue to show aggressive growth and account for more than $58 billion by the end of 2017.

Mobile payments face many challenges

While the report suggests a promising future for mobile commerce, it also notes that challenges that this sector has been faced with recently. Over the past year, the mobile commerce space has become inundated with a variety of platforms that offer convenient payment support to consumers. While there is no shortage of variety, none of these platforms have yet established a substantial lead over the others. The problem is that most of these platforms compete on a technological level, meaning that they are not universally accommodating to those interested in making mobile payments. The report suggests that the competition that these platforms create will keep growth in check until 2016.

NFC considered a wild card for many

The report also suggests that continued focus on NFC technology could be problematic for the future of mobile commerce. NFC has been subjected to harsh criticisms concerning security and efficiency. While most mobile commerce platforms are based on the technology, eMarketer notes that the technology itself is considered a “wild card” by those investing in mobile payments.