Consumers in Sub-Saharan Africa Ready for Next Step in M-commerce
(firmenpresse) - STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN -- (Marketwire) -- 08/29/12 --
* Ericsson ConsumerLab study identifies ways of using m-commerce in three
African countries
* Traditional advertising alone won't work for m-commerce; education
helps
users trust and adopt new services
* M-commerce players should take special notice of women in sub-Saharan
Africa - they are responsible for household finances
In a new report from its ConsumerLab, Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) maps out the
potential of transformation within m-commerce across the region of
sub-Saharan Africa.
Based on in-depth, extensive interviews with mobile phone users in Ghana,
South
Africa, and Tanzania, the report has four key findings: that consumers are
constantly looking for new ways to improve their personal budgets; the
speed and
convenience of m-commerce points to great potential in the market; current
behaviors and social structures indicate that the use of mobile payment
services
will expand; and that consumers need more information about the
functionality
and security of m-commerce transactions.
Consumers tell Ericsson researchers that they use mobile payment services
for
person-to-person transfers and purchasing airtime on their mobile
subscriptions,
and that they like the convenience of accessing money everywhere and at
anytime,
regardless of service hours. In Tanzania, for example, 38% of subscribers
send
money person-to-person over the mobile phone.
Another conclusion of the report is that people who use m-commerce keep
little
separation between private and business accounts. "Many consumers are
entirely
self-employed and are prompted to make transfers from private accounts for
business purposes, so they gain experience with m-commerce," says Anders
Erlandsson, Senior Advisor, Ericsson ConsumerLab.
Experience leads to greater trust, and the report finds that 44% of
non-users of
m-commerce are very worried about the integrity of their account
information in
case of theft or loss of their phones. "Face-to-face introductions, when an
agent meets consumer, are crucial," says Erlandsson. "Just as personal
access to
a bank leads to higher acceptance of more abstract bank services, trust in
mobile services also grows with personal experiences, rather than merely
through
advertising."
The report gives some insight into how household finances are traditionally
handled and guidance for telecom operators in launching services that
consumers
will like and use. Where men and women share a household, men are generally
expected to be breadwinners and women responsible for household finances.
A 45-year old man in Tanzania says: "If we are out of money and we have to
buy
something, my wife will usually solves it somehow. I don't know how she
does it,
women always have their ways."
Users put a high value on easy access to their money, Erlandsson continues:
"Network reliability is another important factor, where concerns have to be
addressed. For example, if you lose connectivity, you cannot access your
money.
"Operators are reliable and technologically adept, providing a service that
is
personal and available to everybody. There is a window of opportunity in
mobile
money services for operators who already have an established relationship
with
consumers, because they have wide presence also in rural areas," he
concluded.
Ericsson ConsumerLab gains its knowledge through a global consumer research
program based on interviews with 100,000 individuals each year, in more
than 40
countries and 15 megacities - statistically representing the views of 1.1
billion people. Both quantitative and qualitative methods are used, and
hundreds
of hours are spent with consumers from different cultures.
Ericsson m-commerce has a global focus on accelerating access and
interconnection between the m-commerce ecosystem and the existing financial
world.
NOTES TO EDITORS
Ericsson ConsumerLab report archive
Media kit on m-commerce
Ericsson m-commerce portfolio
Download high-resolution photos and broadcast-quality video at
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services. We are enabling the Networked Society with efficient real-time
solutions that allow us all to study, work and live our lives more freely,
in
sustainable societies around the world.
Our offering comprises services, software and infrastructure within
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and Communications Technology for telecom operators and other industries.
Today
more than 40 percent of the world's mobile traffic goes through Ericsson
networks and we support customers' networks servicing more than 2.5 billion
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We operate in 180 countries and employ more than 100,000 people. Founded in
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net
sales were SEK 226.9 billion (USD 35.0 billion). Ericsson is listed on
NASDAQ
OMX, Stockholm and NASDAQ, New York stock exchanges.
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Datum: 29.08.2012 - 08:07 Uhr
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