CONSUMERS have shifted their focus from questioning the security of mobile payments to discussing the possibilities of enhanced digital experiences on devices, according to the latest MasterCard research. At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, this month, MasterCard announced the findings from its third annual Mobile Payments Study, which it developed with PRIME Research. The study tracked 19.1 million global social media posts across Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Forums, Weibo, Google+ and YouTube throughout 2014, an increase from 85,000 posts in 2012.
In the Asia Pacific region, the top markets for overall conversations around mobile payments were India, Indonesia, Japan, Australia and China. The study also found that merchant conversations had a remarkable visibility boost in 2014 in Asia Pacific, representing 65 per cent of the total conversations, as opposed to 11 per cent in 2013.
“Overall sentiment around mobile payments continues to improve,” MasterCard says. “In 2014, at least nine in 10 conversations in the Asia Pacific region and across the globe (94%) were favorable. This is compared to 82 per cent and 77 per cent in Asia Pacific and globally, respectively, in 2013. The most positive conversations in Asia Pacific were centered on experiences with mobile payment solutions, praising availability, convenience, and most importantly improved transaction experience (96 per cent favorable tone), the research adds.
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