Its easy to say 'check your statement regularly' but we all have a day job, or looking for one, and the transaction descriptions are sometimes next to useless. They are even registered in another state/city/business name to confuse you further. Chip+Pin was a big help but CNP is still the issue - card data floats around for years and is valid for at least a couple. Its the small charges that get missed.
19 Sep 2011 08:32 Read comment
Brett,
I keep coming back to this blog and think its one of the best assessments of the state of mobile payments there is. The battle for control is prolonged because the potential is great and the rewards are worth it. Unfortunately, the consumer is losing out in the meantime.
On the Telco side, Joint Ventures are springing up all over the world, regionally grouping operators into small standards-creating silos. Part of these JVs is alignment with Banks and Merchants/Retail, but they are all hedging their bets and riding multiple horses.
mWallets lack standards because it lacks an agreed approach/model. Square has a go-it-alone approach to leapfrog the constraints, but will still lag in the adoption stakes because 'Credit Cards' have had over 100 years of development, with Diners Clubs existing for more than 50. As a result, the nearest there is to competing with a POS device is to enable a mobile-device to sit along side it. Signal permitting, this device can potentially capture new generation mobile transactions. Square can do it, but will have to compete with the transaction fees of the Card processors who have years and volume in their favour.
It'll be interesting times ahead.
18 Sep 2011 23:34 Read comment
Thanks, a very useful summary of the problem, that I had not yet heard about. Yes, it is extremely worrying. Just like how a Bank can still 'lose track' of $2Bn, how could a CA not have stronger security in place - its their core business. Never trust the system, always challenge the status quo and put up with the inconvenience that results.
16 Sep 2011 16:47 Read comment
I can't see that the target market for using this is going to be big enough. I mean I don't personally have any issues with my bank when travelling, perhaps since it happens regularly and over the years they know that or I have previously told them (I don't ever remember telling my bank(s) I was travelling).
Second, I don't update my whereabouts on any of those social sites (boring). There's a good chance that neither do others and then when they need a transaction to be social location auth'd it fails anyway.
I think this is just a solution looking for a problem and it'll not be implemented and if it is it will not be adopted by many at all. Just stick a flag in the online banking self care where you can say if you are travelling and maybe even name the country.
15 Sep 2011 09:37 Read comment
Whatever the reason for this service starting now, its ABOUT TIME.
Card transation alerts have been a sensible idea for years. But it seems the cost and risk-assessment of adding it to the platforms was a concern and they were happier to take the hit. There are so many ways to implement cost effective transaction generated SMS alerts, but mostly all involve interfacing with an external service (SMS Aggregator, or the MNO directly!) and that was presumably the hold-up.
Considering how many texts most of us now get on a daily basis, its a no-brainer to have a couple more, and consumerS can always opt-out if its a problem. Ideally, the consumer should be able to specify a level of transaction they want to be alerted about too, like Bank Balance alerting.
But the real objective should eventually be to add transaction policy controls - letting the consumer decide what alerts they want and for what thresholds. Better still, let the consumer decide if they even want their card/account/loyalty points to be used and to what level in each individual case. The Bank can have some controls and visibility too - restricting transactions amounts for higher risk consumers, or merchants, in real time. The obvious candidate here is restricting the level of NFC payments compared to chip+pin ones.
14 Sep 2011 17:11 Read comment
Mobile Ad Personalization - that's one of the things we do.
The point is that mobile devices are so personal to an individual, and that the mobile operator has access to huge amounts of behavioural, purchase and general profile information which means they can select much more relevant advertising for the consumer - it makes the ad inventory more valuable and the click-through rates much higher. The cpm rates are elevated and the ad campaigns much more effective.
The biggest problem is that traditional ad agencies still don't get it, compared to mass-consumer channels like print, radio, tv and even web.
07 Sep 2011 14:10 Read comment
I think its all about exposure and familiarity. Mobile users will happily continue to text to shortcodes because its familiar, and it takes critical mass to shift that behaviour to another method.
QR codes are great - but as you say you need a QR reader app and they are not all great! Also, the marketeers are being conservative and just using codes to link to the homepage on a website - boring. The links need to be deep links that take you to the meat of the topic - not just to the brand website.
05 Sep 2011 13:46 Read comment
I was with you until you backed 3D secure (VbV & MCSec) - horrible systems.
Personally, I think its a perverse result of mobile purchases being painfully slow that it results in less procrastination on the mobile compared to web where you can flit about to other sites much quicker and easily repeat the shopping cart when ready. On the mobile its normally slower and you really don't want to have to repeat it!
05 Sep 2011 13:25 Read comment
Heated keypad would solve it, but I guarantee no bank will pay for that mod until there's a proven case of thermal-image shoulder surfing!
How about wearing gloves?
30 Aug 2011 18:14 Read comment
That's good education.
Makes it sound like there are no gekko-esque dealings in the short selling world? But the markets are fickle and don't really seem to reflect real demand at all, just following the 'pack'. Its definitely not a place for the casual amateur trader and we have to face facts that you need to be on the inside to play.
Companies can 'create value' but at the end of the day it is the markets that arbitrarily decide whether that value is realised in the stock price.
27 Aug 2011 12:00 Read comment
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