The end of credit cards is coming

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26-Jan-2011 17:48

The end of credit cards is coming

Credit cards may soon be as outdated as vinyl record(remember them?)

You can already use your iPhone, Droid or BlackBerry to buy a pie at the match, buy a Starbucks latté or give a friend a few quid by Bumping phones.

But by the end of the year you may not even think twice about reaching for your phone to pay at the register instead of fumbling for your credit card.

While companies have been experimenting with mobile payments for years, 2011 is expected to be the year the technology really takes off.
That's because millions of phones capable of making contactless payments are expected to be shipped out in 2011.

As a result, this pay-by-phone market is forecast to make up £15 billion in transactions by 2015, up from "practically none" last year.

Oh... and I'd hate to worry you peeps, but fraud & security may be an issue too!

As a rough gauge to telecom & mobile 'security' - in 2009 global figures for new VoiP & mobile telecom services - fraud levels were estimated (by the CFCA) as follows: Subscription/ID theft - $22 billion; compromised voicemail systems - $15 billion & premium rate service fraud - $4.5 billion!

Sadly, research (& logic) shows that the more criminals rake in, the more they can invest in increasing their nefarious activities…

Sounds a bit worrying, eh!

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Comments

Contributed by Matt Woods on 27-Jan-2011 17:03

Interesting to see which attributes consumers really value most. With music, we'll sacrifice audio quality for convenience and price. I think you're right about the inherent problem of using phones as e-wallets. Much like ye olde Filofax®... lose one just item and you're screwed! Security headaches abound. How many login details have you got stored on your smartphone? Huge opportunities for encryption companies. Oh, and yes. I concur. Analogue media like vinyl records are far superior but my treasured Stanton turntable is gathering dust..

Contributed by David Hunt on 27-Jan-2011 17:03

Why does this quote from Star Trek IV: The Search for Spock come to mind: "The more they overtake the plumbing the easier it is to stop up the drain"

Contributed by SimplyFone Blogger on 27-Jan-2011 17:02

Yep - probably quite worrying I imagine for an ageing population or the non-techie amongst us..

Contributed by Harry Fowler on 27-Jan-2011 17:01

" Vinyl was and still is a superior product though. I'll be more careful with my phone from now on."

Contributed by Christian Murphy on 26-Jan-2011 21:13

Ironically, investment is all about timing and that generally means once somebody has had some success.
Risk is the enemy of banks!

Contributed by Christian Murphy on 26-Jan-2011 17:50

Hello Norman, I have had conversations with a company that is a early stage player in the whole Mobile Payment arena.
(MobioID)
They have incorporated QR technology.
Do you think the big Telecoms will become virtual credit card operators?
An interesting dynamic and increased competition.

Interesting!

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