Reading Forrester: Mobile payments enter disruptive phase

April 4, 2011 by Daniel Davenport 0 Comments

Forrester has a new paid report out titled “Mobile payments enter a disruptive phase.” Its a good read but doesn’t have any earth shattering conclusions. If you have been playing along most everything you will have already read.

First they define mobile payments: “A transaction in which the transfer of funds is initiated using a mobile phone — excluding the “voice” function of the device.”

Of which there are two types:

Payment systems that utilize the mobile network
Mobile contactless payment systems

Forrester then maps the number of potential scenarios for mobile payments.

Mobile payment environment

Then they go through the various players in the market, from traditional banks and credit card companies to mobile device makers and alternative payment processors. All in all they acknowledge that while NFC is not a new technology 2011 marks the first time that a significant number of consumer devices have NFC chips and that point of sale systems will also be in place this year.

One “risk” noted concerns younger consumers and their relationship with the tranditional financial players:

“Incumbent payment providers must carefully analyze changing attitudes around trust.
Younger consumers don’t hold financial institutions in the same regard as their elders do: Today, only 19% of 16- to 18-year-old Europeans trust financial services firms, compared with 29% of those ages 65 or older.25 Banks may well find that these new, younger consumers are more willing to trust entities with whom they have established relationships, whether that’s new entrants, such as Apple and PayPal, or their mobile operator. This poses a serious threat to a bank’s basic relationship with its customers, which is through a checking or current account. Product strategy executives at banks need to watch for any mobile payment system that might mean younger consumers no longer need bank accounts. Bank product strategists should think through how they can use mobile banking as a platform to maintain that payment relationship and develop loyalty.”