According to the report, more than half of US consumers who made a mobile payment in the interval under review used PayPal Mobile (56 percent), with Amazon Payments and Apples iTunes service statistically tied at about 40 percent.
Furthermore, the report has found that the percentage of network-branded (open loop) prepaid cards is similar to that of closed loop cards in consumer penetration. Strength was seen in all categories, including benefit and payroll cards. This could reflect economic and regulatory factors, as well as better marketing by banks and independent issuers.
Moreover, the study has revealed that for the second year in a row, both biller and bank-operated online bill pay sites were used by more than 50 percent of US respondents. Overall, 73.5 percent of US consumers were shown to use online bill payment. This confirms that online bill payment is now the dominant way in which consumers pay bills in the US.
Finally, the report has shown that reward programs are one of the strongest areas for US banks to build upon, because banks already sit between most commercial transactions and thus have the best data of any competitor. Banks also have a long history of offering rewards on their cards and of working with retailers on cross-promotions. With the limits on debit card interchange creating a revenue gap, targeted offers offer a replacement revenue source and can also anchor ventures in the prepaid and mobile payments markets.
The “Business Strategy: Results from the 2012 Consumer Payments Survey” was issued by US research company IDC Financial Insights.
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