Wouldn’t it be so much easier if we didn’t have to fiddle around with so many different cards – there’s the travel card, the gym card, the debit card – you name it! For a time now technology has been around which allows you to do these payments with your mobile phone. However, as the report Commerce on the Go: Mobile Payment Systems and Solutions shows, despite the predicted success of mobile payments, the market remains immature in most countries. This can be explained by a number of technical and business issues – mobile technology environments are becoming more complex, uncertain, and disruptive.

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In June 2008, Brazil’s telecoms regulator Anatel approved changes to Brazil’s telecoms laws so that a single telecom operator can hold two separate operating licences, effectively paving the way for Telemar, trading as Oi, to complete its takeover of Brasil Telecom (BrT). The deal is still awaiting final government approval, but should be finalised before end-2008.

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In 2008 there will be further trials of mobile payments around the world, including a major European pilot being conducted by O2 in the UK using Near Field Communication (NFC) technology on mobile phones.In addition to O2, there are numerous European mobile network operators working to develop NFC applications, including Bouygues Telecom, KPN, Mobilkom Austria, Orange, SFR, SK Telecom, Telefonica Móviles España, Telenor, TeliaSonera, TIM, Vodafone, Polkomtel, Elisa and 3.

Continue reading “Taiwan: ‘Beep ‘N Go’ Payments with Mobile Phones Might Soon be Reality” »

With rising demand for Taiwanese telecom products in both developing and mature markets, the production in the industry grew significantly in second quarter of 2008.

According to the Industrial Economics and Knowledge Centre, the overall output of Taiwan’s local telecommunication in terms of value during Q2 2008 was at $6.20 billion, indicating its 25% annual growth.

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From 26th September this year, Brazilians no longer need to illegally unlock iPhones bought on a trip to New York or Miami, as the iPhone 3G was finally made available in the South American country. In partnership with Apple, Brazil’s largest mobile phone provider Vivo Participacoes SA began selling the iPhone in a bid to drive sales and boost revenue.

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According to Gartner, the global sales of mobile phones is expected to surge 11% this year to 1.28 billion units, compared to 1.15 billion in 2007, as reported by IndiaInfoLine. Mobile sales in the first quarter of 2008 stood at 294.3 million units, and are estimated to reach 300-305 million units in the second quarter of this year. The mobile phones sales in the Asia-Pacific region is projected to rise by 17.9% against 2007, while in North America, the sales are anticipated to near 185.7 million units, an increase of 5.3% from last year. Moreover, the sales in Western Europe are projected to total at 188 million units, while in Japan, it will reach 47.7 million units.

Continue reading “Changing Lifestyles and New Devices Will See the Global Mobile Industry Boom in 2008″ »

Despite mobile penetration being close to or over 90% in many of the regions countries, it is perhaps a surprise that Asia is still home to one the fastest growing mobile markets in the world. With the growth spurred on by the continent’s two big players, China and India, and other upcoming markets following their lead and showing promise, it only highlights the fact that the Asian telecoms market has bright future ahead of it.

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New research reveals the North American market for hosted outbound integrated voice response (IVR) services is set to more than double from an estimated $213 million in 2008 to $524 million by 2013. Outbound IVR is the next generation contact center technology used for automated, phone-based outbound communications. The report, “Hosted Speech and Outbound IVR Services”, explains that the global market is shifting towards a more personalized, directed method of enterprise communication with customers. At the same time, enterprises are looking for ways to maintain an increased level of communication with customers while controlling costs. Continue reading “Outbound IVR services to more than double by 2013″ »

As consumers were just getting used to the 3rd Generation wireless (3G), the 4th Generation (4G) is making great strides as the next evolutionary stage that will supersede a technology that is only just now becoming a common sight in the mobile market. Although there is no current definition of what the 4G standard actually includes, there are a number of technologies in the marketplace that claim to be the next evolutionary step up from 3G. The two major players vying for the largest slice of the pre-4G pie are LTE (Long Term Evolution) and WiMAX and both have their fair share of support. A recent report assessing the future market opportunities for the evolving 4G wireless platforms presents UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) LTE as the clear early favourite in 4G wireless.

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According to analyst and consulting firm Ovum, the revenues from the cell phone market are projected to reach about US$ 1.019 trillion with nearly 4.99 billion connections by 2012. This indicates the rapid transitions taking place in the wireless market worldwide, as reported by DIGITIMES.

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