A quarter of mobile phone users in Great Britain, France and Germany have shown interest in using Near-Field Communication [1] technology and smartphone applications when shopping and paying via mobile phones. In Poland and Turkey, one-third of respondents declared in favor of new technologies, while in BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China), even two-thirds of respondents had a positive attitude towards new payment methods.
Respondents expressed concern about the security of a new payment method using advanced technologies. This is one of the main reasons why they are distrustful of the payment system using mobile phones. The world summit, held on November 15, 2011, was attended by leading players in the electronic payment market such as: Visa Europe , MasterCard Worldwide , Gemalto and Oberthur Technologies. Panelists and representatives of these companies debated whether there are real grounds for concern about the security of mobile payments or whether it is a matter of perception.
A sample of 13,461 respondents in Great Britain, France and Germany defined the attitude that 69% of (potential) payers require a guarantee that payment using a mobile phone will be secure.
However, it is not only the security issue of the entire process that troubles users and holds back the new payment platform. Only 13% of Britons know exactly which companies provide this type of service, and 14% distinguish which types of mobile payment services are available to them. With the announced introduction of this service by Visa, PayPal , Mobile Money Network and the joint project of the three largest telecommunication operators in Great Britain, it is no wonder that there is confusion among potential users as to how the whole system will actually look and function. Many aspects of the new payment method remain unclear, including whether users know who they can turn to regarding mobile payments, whether they know that their phones can be NFC connected in multiple ways, whether they even know what the advantages of this type of payment are, what are the benefits of mobile wallet applications and many others.
Financial service providers, telecommunications operators and retailers must design such a business solution that will meet the needs of users and allow themselves to take advantage of the opportunities in this market. The question certainly arises whether the attitude of mobile phone users can change quickly when it comes to payments through these devices and in what way.
[1] Near field communication (NFC) represents a set of standards intended for smartphones and similar devices to establish a mutual radio connection. The connection is established by placing the devices at a short distance, just a few cm from each other, or by touching each other. Current and planned applications include contactless transactions, data exchange and simplified setup for more complex communications such as Wi-Fi.