Mobile Payment Magazine

Mobile Payments : Revenue Models and Market Strategies 2015

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Mobile Payments: Revenue Models and Market Strategies,” a Thematic Research Report by Pyramid Research, examines the predominant service and revenue models in the mobile payments arena, as well as the market approach of selected players, in order to identify effective strategies and key success factors. The analysis is built upon in-depth case studies of selected mobile payments services around the world, including Alipay Wallet, Boku, Dwolla, LevelUp, RURU, Paym, Starbucks and Apple Pay.
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Report: Mobile Wallets in the US – Review and Analysis

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Mobile Wallets US ReportA new report entitled Mobile Wallets: The U.S. Landscape by Mercator Advisory Group identifies U.S. mobile wallets by category and technology.

The physical wallet might someday go the way of the checkbook, used by few and no longer a necessity. Growing consumer use of smartphones is creating a market for mobile wallets capable of serving many of the same purposes physical wallets served for centuries but now are able to take advantage of a plethora of new functions made possible in an increasingly digital marketplace. [Read more…]

Chinese Company B.Shark to Extend Mobile Payment Offering to Physical Goods

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Years ago, operator billing was only applied for value-added services such as ringtones, ring back tones, wallpaper, news, music, and the like. Later it was applied to other fields such as mobile games, game tools and the mobile application market. Now, operator billing is extending to more and more fields, including physical goods payments. B.Shark, a Chinese company offering worldwide mobile payment solutions, now plans to extend its offerings to physical goods payment.

Operators are concerned about being a communication/data channel only, so some operators are reducing operator revenue share, especially reducing their own revenue share when it comes to physical goods payments. That is to say, when customers pay for physical goods via operator billing, merchants will receive a higher revenue share than for virtual goods. This strategy will increase the competitive power of operators when competing with banks.

“B.Shark will launch a physical goods payment solution with the cooperation of an overseas e-commerce platform,” according to the marketing director of B.Shark.

Other mobile payment companies, such as Paypal, Boku and Zong, are also planning to cooperate with e-commerce platforms in the field of physical goods payments.

Source: B.Shark

B.Shark Holds Forum on Who Will Play a Leading Roll in Mobile Payments

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B.Shark, a Chinese company offering worldwide mobile payment solutions, recently collaborated with SPforum, the largest microblog dedicated to the Mobile Internet industry in China, to hold a forum about who will play the leading role in worldwide mobile payments. The discussion was lively, and experts from Paypal and Alipay participated, among others.

Some highlights from the forum include:

  • “Telecom Operators, Financial Companies (such as Banks) and third-party payment companies (such as Alipay, Boku, Zong) are playing important roles in mobile payment,” said Mr. Peng, an expert from Paypal.
  • Operators have huge numbers of mobile subscribers and have a good understanding of  the behavior of mobile subscribers; and operators’ customer care centers can also be the customer service centers for mobile payment transactions.
  • The advantage of financial companies is that banks have the best understanding of customers’ payment behavior, and bank branches also can be the place to educate customers about how to use mobile payments.
  • Third-party payment companies, such as Alipay, Boku, Zong, Obopay and Square are playing a more and more important role in mobile payments. “Third-party payment companies always try to improve service for customers and integrate resource from different organizations in the payment value-chain; this is the advantage of third-party payment companies,” said Mr.Ding, an expert from Alipay.

In the area of global payments, mobile payment can be divided into three areas geographically. “In Asian countries, especially Japan and South Korea, with the strong support from operators, a large quantity of applications and services based on NFC drive NFC payment forward; In Africa, only around 20%-30% of adults have bank accounts, mobile payment via telecom networks are successful, M-Pesa in Kenya is an example; In America and Europe, the redit card industry is matured, however operators also try to play a role. For example, Everything Everywhere, O2 and Vodafone, formed a joint venture to accelerate the uptake of mobile commerce in the U.K, and AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon also formed a joint venture mobile company named Isis utilizing near-field communication (NFC) technology in the U.S.A,” said ZhongYuan, Zhang, COO of B.Shark. “The fact that eBay bought Zong for $240 million in cash, shows the value of third-party mobile payments focused on operator billing.”

The mobile payment chain is very long. It includes telecom operators, banks, third-party mobile payment companies, mobile phone producers, etc. When all the parties cooperate, the mobile payment will move faster and more smoothly.

Payment Methods for Chinese Social Networking Service (SNS) Games Exported to Southeast Asian Market

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As Chinese game developers rush to explore the overseas market, game operation as well as in-game payment systems have become a hot topic for game developers.

Chinese game developers are running their games in the overseas markets in a number of ways: First, through massive global social networks, such as Facebook;  other developers prefer to run the games on their own platforms, like Elex-tech; and still others distribute their games via local operators. Game developers who choose the last option are free from worrying about game operating and recharging systems as the agent takes care of that; but if they choose the first option, especially publishing games on Facebook, they need to operate the game on their own and choose their own payment methods.

Regardless of the new Facebook payment policies,  there are three payment methods on Facebook:

  • Facebook credit and PayPal that binds with users’ debit or credit cards;
  • Local game recharging cards;
  • Mobile billing

Facebook credit and PayPal is popular in European countries but rarely in Southeast Asia, as local users are not accusto med to using credit cards.

Compared with PayPal, the use of game recharging cards is more widespread. Game recharging cards such as MOL are popular in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, but rarely in Southeast Asia.

As for mobile billing, it is not restricted by sales outlets and it fits the users’ need of paying anytime and anywhere. People choose mobile billing mostly because of its lower risks and ease of use, so it is an important payment method. For some small game developers, it would be difficult for them to go directly to the operators, so a preferrable solution may be to select a mobile billing solution provider that can supply them with customized service, such as provided by B.Shark, Boku and Zong.

In conclusion, not one of the payment solutions is perfect; they are complementary with each other, and Social Networking Service (SNS) game developers should optimize their payment system in order to maximum their income.

Source: B.Shark

Chinese Mobile Game Developers Discuss Expansion to Overseas Markets

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Recently the SPforum Blog, the largest microblog dedicated to the Mobile Internet industry in China, held a forum with topics on how Chinese game developers can expand to overseas markets. The discussion was lively, and more than 100 top Chinese game developers participated.

Some highlights from the forum include:

  • Participants agreed that it is high time for the Chinese game developers to go global. As more opportunities have become available. Many agreed that Chinese developers should be more open and look beyond China to overseas markets. “We will be changed if we cannot change ourselves first,” said Zhishang Wang, CEO of SPforum Microblog.
  • Chinese developers should develop multi-language games for smart phones while developing single-language games for feature phones (non-smart phones). “It is better to develop games in several language versions at the same time since the smart phone AppStore is more often on a global scale,” said Gang Wu, CEO of WiSTONE Entertainment, a famous mobile game developer in China.
  • Games for smart phones can be distributed to Europe, Asia, and Latin America, while games for feature phones should be distributed to countries where Chinese feature phones are exported mostly, such as Vietnam, Thailand, Russia, Brazil, Nigeria, etc.
  • Games for Android can be distributed through third party Android Market. With China, for example, EOE and 1Mobile would be the most popular. These markets already have a large number of users in overseas markets. Games for feature phones can be distributed through the Sky-Mobi Platform, which is the largest Chinese AppStore in feature phones covering users in over 80 countries.
  • Game developers should adopt several payment solutions for its games and users will choose the best solution by themselves. The suggested payment solutions are Boku, Zong, Paypal, B.Shark, etc. B.Shark is the leading mobile payment solution provider in China that have premium short codes in 116 countries, covering 300+ operators, and B.Shark can offer faster after-sales service for Chinese game developers comparing with foreign payment solution providers.

“Chinese game developers should take advantage of Chinese resources when expanding to overseas market, such as quantity of Phone producers in China and those Chinese AppStore solution providers who focus on overseas markets,” said Zhongyuan Zhang, COO of B.Shark.

Source: B.Shark

 

BOKU 1-Tap Mobile Billing Live in 56 Countries

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BOKU, Inc., an online mobile payments provider, has released the production version of its 1-Tap Mobile Billing for Android, now live in 56 countries. The developer SDK opens up significantly expanded revenue opportunities to Android developers via direct carrier billing for in-app purchases, along with a consumer reach that spans the globe. Once integrated, BOKU’s production Android SDK provides users with a simple 1-Tap purchase process that does not require the collection of credit cards, financial information, user login, or registration through a third-party website.

“When we developed the beta version, the reaction was tremendous and the value to developers was immediately clear,” said Erich Ringewald, CTO of BOKU. “The production version released today includes global country coverage, faster end-to-end transaction time, clear messaging to consumers and enhanced error handling. All these new features help to increase conversion rates to merchants while providing a seamless and secure purchase experience.” [Read more…]

BOKU Partners with O2 and mpass for Direct Mobile Billing Services in Germany

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Telefónica O2 Germany, a provider of broadband and mobile services, and BOKU Inc., an online mobile payments company, today announced a direct carrier billing relationship. Under the agreement, O2 customers can  use BOKU’s payment platform to purchase virtual and digital goods ranging from .09 Euros to 30 Euros. O2 customers pay for goods by entering their mobile number and charging directly to their mobile phone carrier bill.

O2 is part of Telefónica, a global provider of broadband and mobile services, and the second largest carrier group in the world. O2’s mpass system allows direct carrier billing for the purchase of virtual, digital and physical goods.

This new partnership integrates the BOKU mobile payments platform into O2 Germany’s operator billing interface, enabling the following features:

  • Support for one-off and subscription payments in Germany
  • Full pricing granularity from .09 Euros to 30.00 Euros
  • Authorization and Capture APIs with refund support
  • In-App Billing support
  • Web Billing support

“This agreement opens up the opportunity for BOKU merchants to offer payment for physical goods as well as virtual and digital goods,” said James Patmore, Managing Director, BOKU in EMEA. “Our partnership with O2 confirms our vision of evolving online mobile payments into a range of new vertical markets.”

“Understanding customer needs and merchant requirements in regards to our payment products is essential for continuing our success story in the mobile payment area. A close collaboration with BOKU ensures we position ourselves closely to the key players in the market,” said Michiel van Eldik, Managing Director Wholesale and Partner Management, Telefónica O2 Germany.

“We want to provide our customers with a safe, reliable, and convenient payment solution to pay for goods, be they virtual or physical,” continued O2’s van Eldik. “BOKU’s mobile payments platform has the right blend of technology and finance-grade infrastructure to mesh well with O2 customer needs.”

BOKU’s bank-grade mobile payment service is available to online merchants and publishers on a global scale. The BOKU service enables merchants and publishers to drive incremental revenue by offering carrier billing as a payment option to their customers. BOKU is connected to 230 mobile operators in more than 65 countries, and provides access to more than 2.5 billion potential customers who can pay by mobile.

Source: Business Wire

375 Million+ Mobile Payment Users by 2015, Says Report

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Mobile payments are an emerging opportunity to make payment from or with a mobile handset. While a success in certain countries and with fringe audiences already, mobile payments have not yet achieved success on a global scale. However, it is anticipated that this will begin to change in 2011 as the number of mobile payment users starts a significant run up from 116 million to over 375 million in 2015, according to a recent research report from In-Stat.

“There appears to be consumer demand for mobile payments,” says Amy Cravens, Market Analyst. “Consumers do recognize pain points with current payment systems and indicate support for a cleaner, easier alternative. If mobile operators are able to push beyond the infrastructural challenges and introduce these services to the mass market, the transactional value of the mobile payments market is positioned to grow nearly tenfold over the next several years.”

Recent research findings identify the market’s preparedness including:

  • Significant smartphone penetration.
  • Consumer comfort level with purchasing goods with their phone through existing channels.
  • A desire among mobile operators to develop opportunities to generate revenue from mobile based commerce.
  • Infrastructural developments supporting contactless payments, including NFC-enabled mobile phones and Point of Sale (POS) terminals.

The In-Stat report, entitled “Mobile Payments: Is the Market Ready?” examines the mobile payment market structure, outlining the various elements in this multifaceted market. Discussion will include mobile payment types as well as the relationships comprised in this complex ecosystem.

The report also includes:

  • Market player profiles including: Bling Nation, Boku, Clairmail, Isis, mFoundry, and Obopay
  • Forecasts for the mobile payments market through 2015
  • Forecasts of anticipated usage and transaction volume
  • Detailed examination of the NFC market
  • All forecasts extend through 2015 and are segmented by geographic regions

Source: MarketWire

Hottest Mobile Payment Startups

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Here’s a preliminary list of the hottest mobile payment startups.  Feel free to add to the conversation:

Carrier Billing

Purchase in App (not billed via carrier)

  • Apple (iTunes)

Contactless / Mobile Contactless:

P2P Transfer

Mobile Checkout

China

  • UMPay
  • SmartPay
  • LianLian

India

  • Paymate

Philippines

  • Globe GCASH

Japan

  • Mobile Suica
  • Edy

Reference: GusFundler