Mobile Commerce

Mobile Commerce, or m-Commerce, is about the explosion of applications and services that are becoming accessible from Internet-enabled mobile devices. It involves new technologies, services and business models. It is quite different from traditional e-Commerce. Mobile phones impose very different constraints than desktop computers. But they also open the door to a slew of new applications and services. They follow you wherever you go, making it possible to look for a nearby restaurant, stay in touch with colleagues, or pay for items at a store.


  There are some key reasons why E-commerce has boomed in the last few years:


 Consumers are changing their behaviour and expectations with regard to shopping and brand loyalty:

• Mobile phones and the web are now allowing people to be more connected than ever - messages from other consumers are often more valued and trusted than messages from companies.
  

• Consumers respond positively to businesses that take the time to understand their needs and
  offer excellent customer service. Mobile technology allows businesses to become more serviceoriented
  in what they do and to tailor what they provide to better meet the needs of individual
  consumers.
  

Businesses are changing the way they do business 

• Businesses are looking for innovative ways to enter into a relationship with consumers.
   
• Technology is allowing a two-way dialogue between brand owners and consumers to be real. 

• Businesses are also recognising the value of collaborating more closely with business partners and competitors. Sharing information about consumer behaviour and supply chain processes is of critical importance.

• Businesses are taking advantage of advances in technology to work faster, leaner and more intelligently. Small businesses are no longer at a disadvantage since complex business applications are available via the internet at low cost. 3 Mobile phones are enabling these changes to happen on a global scale

• There are over 3 billion mobile phones worldwide. This means that over 40% of the world’s
  population carries a mobile phone, far more than use a computer or have access to the internet.
  In many developed countries, mobile phone penetration is above 90% and developing countries are catching up fast.

• Closer, more personalised relationships between businesses and consumers are possible via mobile phones. 

• Emerging applications and services that add value to physical products and brands and go beyond limits previously imposed (such as extended packaging) already exist today on mobile phones.

• Existing business issues (such as inefficient couponing) can be resolved effectively using mobile technology.

• Convergence of different technologies on single devices that are available anywhere and anytime is allowing existing technologies (such as the internet) to evolve and extend their reach even further.