Payment solutions firm Adyen has released the findings of its fourth Adyen Mobile Payments Index covering the period of January through March 2014.

The Index reveals that mobile web payments accounted for 20.1 per cent of all payment transactions on Adyen’s network worldwide in March – more than 66 per cent higher than March 2013. Of that 20.1 per cent, smartphones accounted for 10.9 per cent of all payment transactions, while tablets generated 9.3 per cent of total transactions.

The continued growth in mobile payments this quarter is reflected by the fact that 70 per cent of Adyen merchants worldwide are seeing payments traffic originating from the mobile web. This growth in mobile payments manifested across several key verticals tracked by Adyen each quarter, including Travel (+5 per cent), Ticketing (+3.2 per cent), Retail (+2.8 per cent) and Digital Goods (e.g., books, movies, music, etc.; (+6.2 per cent). The Index illustrates that the previous high growth rates in mobile web payments is starting to level out as mCommerce becomes more mainstream. The Gaming sector showed a small decline this quarter (-1.6 per cent) as in-app payments have become more prevalent.

“Now that the majority of merchants worldwide are engaging with consumers via the mobile web, the paradigm has shifted from, ‘Will people actually buy goods and services with their mobile devices?’ to ‘Fact: mobile commerce is a vital sales channel for both merchants and consumers – and therefore deserves increased focus’” said Roelant Prins, chief commercial officer at Adyen, which processed more than $2.2bn in mobile payments in 2013.

In terms of mobile web transactions, smartphones lead with nearly 54 per cent (+2.9 per cent over last quarter) compared to tablets, which captured 46 per cent (-2.9 per cent). The iPhone continues to lead smartphone transactions with almost 31 per cent, but Android phones are also strong with a 22.5 per cent share. Windows Mobile and BlackBerry represent 0.6 per cent and 0.1 per cent respectively. On tablet devices, the iPad dominates with 38.4 per cent (-3.6 per cent), compared to 7.6 per cent on Android tablets (+0.7 per cent).

Mobile web transaction volume increased in Q1 across all industry sectors tracked except Gaming, whose transaction numbers declined on both smartphones (-19 per cent) and tablets (-10 per cent) as in-app payments are becoming more and more popular in this sector.

During the quarter, Digital Goods purchases on tablets grew 50 per cent, and smartphone purchases increased 30 per cent. In Retail, Travel and Ticketing, smartphone purchases increased 31 per cent, 26 per cent and 21 per cent respectively, but tablet purchases saw less than 10 per cent growth each (8 per cent, 5 per cent and 8 per cent respectively).

Share of Transaction Volume:

• Travel: smartphones 22 per cent (up from 17.5 per cent in Q4); tablets 12.5 per cent (up from 11.9 per cent)
• Retail: smartphones 9.3 per cent (7.1 per cent); tablets 16.5 per cent (15.9 per cent);
• Ticketing: smartphones 15.75 per cent (13 per cent), tablets 8.1 per cent (7.5 per cent)
• Digital goods: smartphones 16.9 per cent (13 per cent); tablets 7.5 per cent (5 per cent)
• Gaming: smartphones 7.3 per cent (down from 9 per cent in Q4); tablets 2.7 per cent (down from 3 per cent)

In terms of transaction amounts, the Travel sector was the clear winner in Q1, with its average value per transaction increasing 63 per cent on tablets and almost 30 per cent on smartphones over Q4. Despite a reduction in actual mobile web transactions, the Gaming sector’s average per-transaction value increased 18 per cent on smartphones and nearly 7 per cent on tablets.

Ticketing showed marginal growth in Q1 (3 per cent on tablets, 2 per cent on smartphones), but both the Retail and Digital Goods sectors saw a decline in transaction values (Retail: -8 per cent on tablets, -15 per cent on smartphones; Digital Goods: -4 per cent on tablets, more than 4 per cent on smartphones). Across all industry sectors, consumers spent more money via tablets than via smartphones, and tablets also beat out PC purchases in Ticketing, Gaming and Digital Goods.

Average transaction value:

• Travel – PC: $281 (£167); tablets: $201; smartphones: $79
• Retail – PC: $144; tablets: $113; smartphones: $77
• Ticketing – PC: $65; tablets: $66; smartphones: $61
• Gaming – PC: $55; tablets: $66; smartphones: $54
• Digital Goods: PC: $33; tablets: $35; smartphones: $29

“The decrease in average per-transaction value for Retail and Digital Goods this quarter may be attributed to a post-holiday season correction, as mobile consumers return to more normal purchasing behaviours, or the fact that mobile has become more mainstream, generating an increasing number of smaller transactions,” said Prins. “Either way, the continued popularity of mCommerce among consumers sends a clear signal that merchants should increase their focus on the mobile channel.”
There’s more information about the Index, including an infographic, here.