Mobile networks and services have already made their space in developed countries. Such applications and services are increasingly gaining their foothold in developing countries also. The fourth Consumers & Convergence Report, an annual KPMG survey which examines how consumers use technology has found that despite concerns over privacy and data security, consumers in Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) are actively embracing mobile networks as their de facto telecommunications standard.
Respondents from BRIC nations have demonstrated greater willingness to pay for both online and mobile content, compared to G7 or global users, including content like news and information. The survey found they would also consider switching Internet service providers for exclusive content.
Covering 22 countries, the 2010 report surveyed over 5,600 people on their day-to-day use of mobiles and PC technology and claimed that consumers, in Asia Pacific are increasingly adopting a variety of mobile and cloud-computing applications.
The research brought to light that users in India and China were the most inclined ones towards personal banking, retail transaction via mobiles. They are also more willing to use the drive for personal banking as well as receiving ads over cheaper basic services.
In India, despite concerns over privacy and data security, 38 percent of respondents use their mobiles to shop from a retailer's site, and 43 percent for banking transactions, a significant increase over the previous survey, 8 percent and 3 percent respectively. Users are becoming more comfortable in using their mobile handsets to manage financial services, just as they adopted internet banking, electronic bill-payments and e-commerce at the start of the broadband era.
Increasingly invention in mobile services, less time consumption, rising performance expectations and a growing realization of the value of customer satisfaction are driving a burgeoning demand for such self service using mobile technology.
Despite attempts by manufacturers and service providers to make their products and services available to the end users, companies and consumers are showing little desire or time to maintain and utilize their services preferring to make use of self service through mobile technology instead.
Sean Collins, Global Chair, Communications and Media, KPMG, said: "Compared with our last survey which used data from 2008, the 2010 survey shows conclusively that mobile internet is rapidly opening up a new marketplace. China and India lead the world in acceptance of mobile banking. Naturally, this reflects the fact that those countries are far less penetrated by bricks-and-mortar banks than in the West but it also shows a high degree of acceptance of the way in which new technology can change society."
According to an estimate by the Consultative Group to assist the Poor, by 2012, mobile banking operators could see nearly $8 billion in revenue just by expanding their services to the currently unbanked. The survey says that M-banking is the best opportunity yet to deliver financial services to the 1 billion people in the world who don't have a bank account, but do have a cell phone.
As it has become a global trend, the percentage of respondents who have used their mobile devices for banking across the globe has more than doubled to 46 per cent from 19 per cent just 18 months ago. The percentage of people who have used a mobile phone to buy goods and services has risen from 10 per cent to 28 per cent.
Well, it seems that as we are heading to a new decade, there seems to blue skies ahead for consumer services like mobile banking, retail transaction via mobiles.
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