Features
PayforIT - An Unbeatable Mechanism for Mobile Purchases
The mobile payment initiative, PayforIT, officially came into force across all UK mobile internet services and networks earlier this year in September. The payment system was welcomed by the mobile industry; and now operators, content providers and API’s (Accredited Payment Intermediaries) alike are hoping the initiative will succeed where Simpay failed.
Dialogue Communications is one of the companies at the forefront of payforIT developments. Dialogue was the first aggregator to be accredited by all operators and was the first to take a customer live with the solution. Managing Director, Guillaume Peersman, takes a look at how the new payment mechanism works, what the future holds for it and most importantly why it will succeed where other systems have failed.
How PayforIT Works
When the system was first introduced, the aim was to rebuild trust between mobile users and content providers after the damage done by subscription services. The vision across the industry was for the user to see a standard mobile payment acceptance screen for any content bought on their mobile, no matter who they are buying from. The aim was to give the user a clearer understanding of what and how they will be charged for mobile content both on and off portal, encouraging consumer confidence and repeat buying.
And so far results are optimistic. Since Dialogue went live with payforIT in January 2007, the feedback has been positive, with statistics from content providers and API’s demonstrating a clear increase in conversation rates. Dialogue has seen a rise of up to 27 per cent on conversion compared to premium SMS solutions for its connected customers and mobile games specialist, I-Play, Dialogue’s first payforIT customer, is now approaching a 15 per cent conversion rate for customers visiting its mobile site.
PayforIT looks set to dominate m-payments for some time to come, but it is by no means the finished product and further developments need to be made, which is something all operators and API’s are working to achieve over the coming months.
Issues such as pricing clarity and duplication are areas that require further work. In 2008, the pricing points are likely to be raised to £10 across all operators, which will provide a new revenue stream above and beyond pure content sales delivered to handsets. Consumer awareness of the brand also needs to be increased if it is to succeed and the mechanism needs to be fully deployed by all operators both off and on portal.
UK Leading The Way
The UK has always been a leading light in terms of new services for mobile and it is again leading the way with payforIT. The mobile market in the UK provides the perfect starting platform for the brand, as it has a high penetration rate and users are generally keener to try new things.
I believe the next target countries for payforIT will be Ireland and Australia, and if it is successful other counties will also be incorporated. France, Spain and various other European countries have WAP billing solutions, although many are only on portal. I believe there are around 40 operators worldwide offering WAP billing services, who could potentially use payforIT.
Successor to Simpay
Before payforIT came Simpay - a payment system developed in 2005 that attempted to bring operators’ payment mechanisms in line worldwide and offer a straightforward payment facility for content providers.
However after 18 months in the market, the system failed to produce concrete results, which many believe was due to the fact that it arrived ahead of its time and the mobile industry was not quite ready to adhere to one system. Additionally, Simpay was launched on a global scale with all operators around the world, rather than having an initial one country trial, where success could be monitored before rolling it out worldwide. This is where payforIT has learned from Simpay’s mistakes, the mobile content market is now ready for such a payment mechanism and its success in the UK market will be gauged first, before moving on to new territories.
PayforIT in 2008
2008 will be a big year for payforIT and I think it will be the year that sees mobile subscriptions really come back into force. payforIT will become more accepted and trusted by the public because the consumer’s identity is protected and not distributed to the merchant by default.
Data charges also look set to go through major changes, as more operators start to offer “all-you-can-eat” tariffs. This will encourage greater usage of the mobile internet and mobile purchasing and payforIT will become an integral part of the mobile buying experience.
PayforIT will come up against some tough competition over the coming year from systems such as Google Checkout and Paypal Mobile. However, by making some minor developments, this registration-free payment tool, which is quick and easy to use, looks set to become the market leading initiative it has always looked likely to be.