Global mobile-commerce market growth being fuelled by the rapid adoption of smartphones

The global mobile-commerce market has been forecast to grow by more than +20% annually over the next few years, with the number of mobile shoppers worldwide projected to approach 600 million by 2014.

Mobile commerce is one of the hottest sectors right now and it is gaining importance for a wide range of industries, including telecommunications, IT, finance, retail and the media, as well as for end-users. It works best in those areas where it can emphasise the core virtue of mobile networks - convenience.

Growth is being fuelled by the rapid adoption of smartphones in both mature and developing markets, as well as a retail market in which traditional brick-and-mortar retailers are implementing multi-channel strategies in the face of increasing competition from Internet-based vendors.

The enormous success of smartphones is linked to the Apps which are available and increasingly commercial models will be linked to these apps - which will result in further spectacular growth in m-commerce.

Near-field communication (NFC) will facilitate transactions valued at $74 billion by 2015 as NFC is increasingly used for the payment of goods in-store and as transport tickets; this is over treble the estimated value of this market in 2011. The increasing use of mobile devices as an alternative to credit cards and paper tickets is one of the fastest growing segments of the mobile commerce market.

Mobile is now transitioning from what was initially viewed by many as a retail experiment to a viable component of a full-blown multi-channel offering. Consumer awareness has been boosted by the "Groupon effect" and now everyone wants a bargain. This is further exacerbated by the need in the retail sector to a) differentiate from the competition, b) be seen to be offering value, and c) an enhanced need to increase consumer engagement and interaction. Mobile helps to fulfil all of these criteria.

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) says there were just shy of 6 billion mobile subscriptions globally by the end of 2011, roughly 87% of the global population. The number of mobile Internet users will increase by 9 percent a year for the next five years. More and more individuals will turn to mobile for everything.

This means you can engage users, listen to them, offer solutions and sell something on a personal 24/7 anywhere access basis provided you have the resources to cover the 24/7 span.

For more information on the global mobile-commerce market, see the latest research: Global Mobile-Commerce Market

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