m-Commerce – It's All Happening

Ever since ICT was 'invented', we have had to cope with many new advances in both in technology and in a whole set of new acronyms: b2b, e-commerce, t-government, global electronic marketplace, blogging, phishing, and so on. Mostly the commercial success of these new innovations has not lived up to expectation, however, m-commerce is set to change all that.

It got off to a bad start, WAP is a pain, 3G did not do it for us, mobile banking has not been an overnight success. At the same time the mobile phone industry has concentrated on where the money is: more SMS, MMS, MP3, MP4 etc. So why should m-commerce be poised for major success? Why is it all happening? What is the evidence.

Consider first of all the opportunity. There are more mobile phones in the country than people, and the rate of replacement of phones is such that the vast majority are new with the latest 3G, Java and large SIM chip memory. At the same time competition is driving connection time costs ever downwards. This means that most of us are readily accessible online most of the time with minimal cost implications.

The other side of the coin is the rapid growth of Internet trading, both b2b and c2b, including retail. A significant part of major retailers' income is now derived from web sales. So, if they can give access online anytime, anywhere, both customers and suppliers will benefit and if current mobile phone access to online services is made clear, secure and easy to use, we will create a win-win situation. This is m-commerce.

But it is not as easy as all that, as many found out when they first started trying to exploit the power of the Internet (and that was easy compared to m-commerce !). On the other hand consider the possibilities:

  • Linking to advertisements as you pass them in the street before the impulse to buy wears off
  • Interacting with the television, again to impulse buy
  • Being guided round retail stores based on a wish list or profile
  • Purchasing from several stores at the same time, perhaps buying a car and a coat colour matched to the lipstick you have just bought
  • Waking in the middle of the night worrying about paying a bill, paying it and then, being hungry, ordering a take-away pizza
  • Working on the move, whenever, wherever you are

Whereas SMS grew from a need perceived by the user community, mainly the young, m-commerce will initially be in the hands of the providers (retailers, advertising agencies and businesses). However, once it goes beyond a critical point, user enthusiasm will take over and there will be no stopping it. What is essential therefore, is that the providers get their initial actions right to take advantage of the rush when it comes - This is where ALCO Consulting can help – we specialise in the strategic and business issues that are related to m-commerce. For more information contact us on info@alco.eu.com
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