Dear Readers,
It would appear that we are in the summer season of brand exposure – certainly when it comes to the issue of mobile wallets. Two stories that caught my eye last week concerned both the Google wallet and the Isis wallet. Both of which, I think, you may agree - could do with a little more exposure (and usage) than they have been getting of late.
Techcrunch has reported that several Android apps are offering discounts for customers using Google Wallet’s 'Buy with Google' button, as the company tries to ramp up adoption of its payment processing service. The button allows 2-click checkouts on mobile apps, and is, according to industry observers, one of the strategies Google is deploying in its multi-pronged attack on PayPal’s dominance.
While the 'Buy with Google' button for Android allows Google Wallet to leverage the world’s most popular mobile operating system, relatively few merchants are actually using it. Those that are, including Airbnb, Expedia, Fancy, newegg.com, Priceline.com, Ruelala, Tabbedout and Uber, are currently offering promotions to customers who checkout using Google Wallet. Other apps with the button include Booking.com, GoPago, NFC Task Launcher and Wrapp.
Even if Google Wallet does manage to gain more attention and usage, it still has to compete with PayPal dominance. According to a comScore study released in February, only 8 percent of respondents used Google Wallet, compared to the 48 percent who had used PayPal. Google Wallet also suffers from lack of consumer recognition – just 41 percent of respondents were aware of the product, compared to 72 percent for PayPal.
Meanwhile the Isis wallet – the join venture between Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile - is still not available to the masses because it’s being tested in select markets. However, should you be in one of those select markets and are using the app, then according to a promotional email going out to customers who have “activated an Isis Mobile Wallet,” all you need to do is add a “participating” credit card to your account and on your first purchase they will send you a $100 Amazon gift card. I would think that if they are offering incentives in their test markets, things can't be all that great for Isis.
One market that is getting ready to embrace mobile payments at the moment, is Hungary. We reported last week (and in the sidebar) that two thousand Hungarians can try out a contactless payment experience before the commercial launch of new Hungarian NFC-based payment solution 'MobilTárca'.
This solution is the project of the Hungarian Mobile Wallet Association (whose purpose is to promote the dissemination of payment solutions, systems and services based on mobile NFC within Hungary), which involves all three Hungarian mobile network operators, as well as one of the largest financial service providers in Hungary, payments and technology company MasterCard and the SuperShop loyalty program. It will be interesting to see how that takes off.
Russian bank Sberbank is also looking to jump into the mobile payments market, too, but according to reports, they are not doing so with MNOs but rather are looking to use embedded chips in NFC phones. Time frames for this look to be towards the end of this year or the beginning of next, but reports of the bank in talks with Visa and Samsung, and with the Winter Olympic games fast approaching for early 2014 would suggest a trial similar to what we saw during the Summer 2012 Olympics with banks, Visa and Samsung.
And there you have it - this week's editorial was a little bit of a mixed bag for wallets. While some may be faltering in terms of strategy and acceptance, the band wagon elsewhere continues to roll on. I am starting to think that mobile wallet acceptance has less to do with the actual product and more to do with geographical location. If the US was so slow to adopt chin & PIN, what makes anyone think that consumers were going to suddenly accept a mobile payment alternative? However, research firms continue to push the positive. Payments made via a mobile phone will surpass $1 billion in the U.S. this year, according to research firm eMarketer. That's more than double last year's figure of $539 million. Looking ahead, eMarketer predicts that the number will hit $2.6 billion next year before reaching $58.4 billion by 2017. Really?
No doubt, some of you will have views on this and I look forward to hearing them – we'll even print them!
Until next week,
Steve Atkins
Contactless Intelligence
This week on C-ITV
Cryptomathic enables secure payment apps for mobile wallets http://wp.me/p1Jrjn-2u3
Smarter e-ticketing for São Paulo http://wp.me/p1Jrjn-2tY
Lone Worker Protection NFC Mobile App by Crystal Ball http://wp.me/p1Jrjn-2to
Tagtrail Mobile Services Platform Now Available in Apple App Store http://wp.me/p1Jrjn-2tl
Hungary to embrace contactless Payments http://wp.me/p1Jrjn-2tf
Orange launches mobile-to-mobile money transfers between three different African countries http://wp.me/p1Jrjn-2ug
ASK to deliver next 3.5 million contactless Oyster cards to London http://wp.me/p1Jrjn-2uc
FIS Payments Network Enables mobile Payments for Merchant Customer Exchange Members http://wp.me/p1Jrjn-2u9
Payments & m-Commerce
Apple getting closer to mobile payments? http://bit.ly/13EMaHc
Mobile wallet service aims to ease financial transactions in Kenya http://bit.ly/13EMpCl
Mobile money Nigeria: We lack power to regulate Telcos http://bit.ly/13EMqpI
JCB, MPU partner on cashless payments in Myanmar http://bit.ly/13EMINv
Ukraine's PrivatBank launches contactless mobile POS http://bit.ly/13EMHca
UK: End of chip and Pin? Shoppers test payment by fingerprint http://bit.ly/12U5Z7d
Australia: Visa launches V.me digital wallet for online shopping http://bit.ly/12U5XvW
MpayMe on why simplifying mobile payments and offering reward programmes to users is key to adoption. http://bit.ly/12U6rlS
Google Wallet Launches Promotion With Popular Android Apps To Increase Its Brand Recognition http://tcrn.ch/12DhNvK
Asda Money Offers a Guide on Contactless Credit Cards http://bit.ly/12sOR8w
Goodsmiths Selects PayAnywhere API to Power Swipe Mobile Payment App http://bit.ly/12sPbnV
Braintree signs Simple to one-touch mobile payments tech http://bit.ly/12sPkYq
Hong Kong residents now have access to new mobile payments service http://bit.ly/12sPhff
Isis Mobile Wallet Will Give You $100 Amazon Gift Card If You Add a Credit Card to Your Account http://bit.ly/12sPizR
Riskskill Warns That Mobile Payments Sector Could Face A ‘Cocktail’ Of Risks http://bit.ly/1btPOW8
DataOceans adds mobile payment offerings to services http://bit.ly/12lcAJ4
NFC & Mobile
NFC - KISS http://bit.ly/13EM6ax
Russia’s Largest Bank to Use NFC Embedded Chips; Discussing Pilot with Visa, Samsung http://bit.ly/12U6jCO
Taiwanese Mobile Operator To Launch Large Multiapplication NFC Trial http://bit.ly/12U6huN
NFC and QR drive consumer engagement for Google billboard http://bit.ly/184VFih
NFC mobile payments: overcoming the barriers for banks http://bit.ly/12U6uhu
How many smartphones will be featuring NFC chipset through 2017? http://bit.ly/12sPeA7
Nokia announces 41 megapixel Lumia 1020 with NFC http://bit.ly/1btPUNJ
Banca Mediolanum and Vodafone test NFC in Italy http://bit.ly/1btPQNK
Transportation, Ticketing, Access, Security & Loyalty
Backlash in Japan over sales of train e-ticket records http://bit.ly/13EMC8o
Japanese railway company plans to sell data from e-ticket records http://ars.to/13EMuG6
TfL breaks £3.5m contactless payments milestone http://bit.ly/12sPcrU
Snapper shifts payments hub to the cloud http://bit.ly/13PgHSN
Oyster cards too complicated and 'overcharge' passengers, says watchdog http://bit.ly/1btParF
Celltick Partners with Getit Hotdeals to Bring Local Mobile Coupons to the Mass Market in India http://bit.ly/1btPXZM
Other News & Opinion Articles
Bitcoin and M-Pesa: Why money in Kenya has gone digital http://bit.ly/1313BQo
Payleven expands into Austria http://bit.ly/16tdAMy
‘Get Smart and Save’ with the Summer ExxonMobil Smart Card Promotion http://bit.ly/12U68aK
Allied Wallet becomes MasterCard principal member http://bit.ly/12U63Uv
"Financial Cards and Payments in Thailand" Published http://bit.ly/12DhEZc
iZettle First mPOS in Europe to offer JCB Card Acceptance http://bit.ly/12DhDEs
Ingenico and Mercury Deliver Payment Solutions to U.S. Based Specialty Retail and Hospitality Merchants http://bit.ly/12sPq2d
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