Parks Associates, a premier research partner at Mobile Commerce World, is presenting new research at the event showing trends in increasing usage for mobile devices and mobile payment features/purchases. The research firm reports 48% of U.S. smartphone owners currently use apps heavily for daily information and entertainment, while 15% use the phone to order food and 12% use it to shop for physical goods.

Parks Associates' mobile analyst Jennifer Kent will address consumers' preferred mobile payment methods for both proximity and e-commerce use cases in the special session "Consumer Mobile Purchasing Behaviors: Data Behind the Trends," Wednesday, June 26, 12:30-12:50 p.m. in the Expo Floor Theater.

"Consumers are still concerned about the security of mobile payments, but these issues are less of a barrier for younger consumers--over 60% of users 18-24 have made a mobile purchase in the past 30 days," Kent said. "The industry can employ non-payment offerings to show more consumers the benefits of mobile commerce, and as payment security standards improve, consumers' comfort level with mobile payments will rise."

Harry Wang, Director, Health & Mobile Research, Parks Associates, chaired the track "Strategies for Mobile Marketers" on Monday, June 24. He also moderated the sessions "Marketers' Mobile Strategy and Practices: Innovations and Lessons," "Mobile's Role in Multi-Channel Marketing and Branding," and "How Mobile Social Networking Changes Mobile Commerce." 

By 2015, 84% of mobile subscribers in North America and 88% in Western Europe will be smartphone users. "Mobile payments in emerging markets pose enormous revenue potential for mobile carriers," Wang said. "Segments of this market are diverse now, but all major players are planning for a converged future where one digital wallet can be used for in-person retail payments and remote online payments on any CE platform."

Mobile Commerce World 2013, June 24-26 at the Palace Hotel, is a three-day conference that allows business and technology executives the opportunity to explore and enhance their mobile commerce strategies.

From the article, "48% of U.S. smartphone owners rely on apps for daily information and entertainment."