A mobile based payment system soon to be launched in India

In just about a couple of months, mobile users in India will be able to use their mobile phone to pay for things, just as they use their credit card or debit card.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has stated in its annual policy statement that it will come up with the guidelines to formulate a payment system using mobile phones. RBI is discussing seriously with service providers, banks, and other financial institutions about this move and the guidelines are expected to be released on June 15th.

Already, mobile banking in India is gaining popularity big time with lots of big banks embracing this technology to make it easier for their customers. Prominent banks like ICICI, HDFC, and SBI offer mobile banking facility and ICICI has gone one step ahead and has started a mobile based service called mShop which allows you to shop using your mobile phone.

I think this is a great move by RBI. Mobile phone market in India is huge and a mobile based payment service makes complete sense at this stage. FYI, I had already blogged about a mobile based service in India where you can use your mobile phone as your airplane boarding pass. Things like this can really help people a lot and can make mobile phones more useful than what they are right now. Stay tuned for more updates on this issue.

Categories: All things mobile phones.

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The future is mobile

A recent Harris Interactive Study comes up with some interesting statistics.

1. Around 25% of mobile users like to access mobile internet and purchase things using their credit card.

2. Around 20% of users expressed interest in the concept of mobile wallet – in which charges will be billed to their mobile accounts.

3. Around 10% expressed their interest for stock trading and wire transfers via their mobile phone.

4. Around 16% make use of mobile banking facilities.

While these statistics show that mobile users are becoming comfortable using their mobile phones for banking and shopping, a significant number of mobile users are still worried about security encryption of their data and the possibility of financial scams.

Actually, when services like banking and shopping went online, people raised similar concerns. It took a while for people to understand that doing things online can be much easier and safer. Look at the scenario now. People use internet banking and online shopping regularly. Similarly, I think it’s the duty of network carriers and the concerned parties that offer these facilities to address mobile users’ concerns and reassure them. Once they do, people will embrace this technology and mobile based services and facilities will become enormously popular.

Categories: All things mobile phones.

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