Collaboration and Joint Ventures will Drive mPayments

Joint ventures and collaboration will be the driving force beyond the development of the mPayments market, according to Frost & Sullivan. Cooperation between telcos and financial institutions, the analyst says, enables tapping the expertise of both sides.

“With joint ventures, market participants can leverage their brand name across diverse industries to create awareness of mPayment services,” says Frost & Sullivan research analyst Jayashree Rajagopal. “Similarly, regional factors such as the level of credit/debit cards usage in a particular country have to be considered when developing alternative payment services aimed at increasing customer adoption.”

Frost & Sullivan attributes the slow roll out of mPayment services so far to the absence of defined business models, which – along with lack of awareness and customer retention strategy – can quickly tarnish the lustre of most services.

“The success of mPayment services will largely depend on repeated usage,” says Rajagopal. “To achieve that, service providers need to encourage the use of mPayment services through mobile customer relationship management, including mobile vouchers and loyalty cards.”