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Mobile wallet has a long way to go to convince consumers

by Scott Bicheno on 14 June 2011, 17:14

Tags: YouGov

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Wallet inertia

When we've written about mobile wallet technology in the past its been met with a mixture of cautious optimism and outright scepticism, but at least it was being discussed. Outside the rarefied atmosphere of mobile-device/HEXUS, however, it seems you're lucky if people have even heard of it.

That was the one of the not especially surprising findings of a new study from YouGov into UK perceptions of mobile wallet technology. It found 70 percent of consumers had never heard of it and 91 percent had never heard of NFC (near field communications).

Only a quarter of people are actively interested in paying for stuff using their mobile phones, but over a third admitted they had no idea if their current phone was capable of it. Furthermore 69 percent of people who have NFC technology on their credit cards never use it.

"Many consumers are attracted by the idea of paying for items via their mobile phone," said YouGov consultant Russell Feldman. "But it is down to mobile operators and handset manufacturers to work with retailers to educate consumers about the real advantages of paying for items in this way. We believe once people have seen it in practice - and are reassured about the measures in place to protect their financial and personal security - they will be quick to adopt it and the industry will reap the rewards."

Here's a table showing the reasons given for not seeking out an NFC-enabled phone.

 

 



HEXUS Forums :: 11 Comments

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Personally don't like the idea at all, plus I can't see the older generations picking up this idea, so its not really going to become main stream service for decades.

Don't like the idea of someone being able to steal my phone and then go on a shopping spree with it, in the age of digital crime and fraud, this just seems like a dream come true for criminals.
im still not convinced, dont see me ever being to be honest. Just seems too risky.
Biscuit
im still not convinced, dont see me ever being to be honest. Just seems too risky.
I am convinced …. I'm convinced I don't like the idea one little bit, and will not use it while there is any practical alternative, including actual cash. I won't even use a credit or debit card, with a few rare exceptions. if I can avoid it, so the hell with digital wallets.
So far I've seen no technical specifications on an implementation of it. So I'll reserve judgement. With that said, I don't see anything wrong with current cash or card payment methods. And Saracen is rightfully concerned with turning you into a data-mining statistic.
Chip and pin is weak anyway. If digital wallet is better, I might embrace it.