Mobile-Phone Payments to Reach $50 Billion by 2014, Report Says
Consumers worldwide will spend about $50 billion using their mobile phones through a technology called near field communications by 2014 as the payment method gains popularity in the U.S., a research firm said.
North America and Western Europe will account for 50 percent of the total spending, surpassing the Asian market dominated by Japan, Juniper Research said in a report today.
European and U.S. carriers are investing in technology that allows people to pay for bus, movie and museum tickets by waving a mobile device across a reader. Google Inc. (GOOG) last month unveiled a new service with Sprint Nextel Corp. (S) to let consumers pay merchants with their phones. France Telecom SA (FTE) plans to offer a contactless-payment system in the second half.
Juniper’s estimate is dwarfed by an earlier prediction by IE Market Research Corp. that NFC technology may account for one-third of the $1.13 trillion in global mobile-payment transactions projected for 2014.
Google Wallet will be available in San Francisco and New York this summer. Apple Inc. also plans to introduce NFC features for its iPhone and iPad tablet, Richard Doherty, director of consulting firm Envisioneering Group, said in January. Nokia and its software partner Microsoft Corp. are working on NFC functionality, too.
To contact the reporter on this story: Hugo Miller in Toronto at hugomiller@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Peter Elstrom at pelstrom@bloomberg.net
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