Electronic commerce conducted via mobile devices such as phones and
PDAs will take off over the next few years to become a $25bn
(£17.bn) market worldwide by 2006, according to a study by Frost
& Sullivan.
By that time, m-commerce will account for 15% of the world's online
commerce, according to a summary of the study.
According to Frost & Sullivan, several different market sectors
will make up m-commerce, including:
- automated point-of-sale payments (vending machines, parking
meters and ticket machines)
- attended point-of-sale payments (shop counters, taxis)
- mobile-accessed Internet payments (merchant WAP sites)
- mobile-assisted Internet payments (fixed Internet sites using
phone instead of credit card)
- peer-to-peer payments between individuals.
Of these, mobile-assisted Internet payments will account for 39% of
m-commerce spending, and peer-to-peer payments between individuals
will account for 34%, the company said.
The benefits of m-commerce to consumers include convenience for
booking and paying for tickets, and managing stock trading or
financial transactions. Benefits for merchants and banks include
reducing fraud and cash-handling costs, and an estimated 20%
increase in sales caused by customers being able to make payments
more easily and conveniently.
Consumers, merchants and banks all benefit from the increased
security of mobile phone-based transactions compared with online
credit card payments, which remain a concern to many potential
e-commerce consumers, according to the study.
M-commerce, offers significant market opportunities for network
operators, banks, credit card associations, manufacturers and many
startups looking to claim a stake in the payment market, Frost
& Sullivan said.