Mobile Payments Becoming More Popular, With iOS Leading Pack

Apple iOS devices accounted for nearly 75 percent of all mobile transactions on Adyen’s platform, with Android running far behind in second place.

The overall percentage of purchases made using mobile phones and tablet devices is increasing, according to the latest report from global payments solution specialist Adyen, which showed that mobile-payment transactions on its platform from May to August 2013 have increased by 27 percent worldwide, jumping from 13.8 percent of all transactions at the end of April 2013 to 17.5 percent in August 2013.

Mobile purchases increased to 24.1 percent from 20 percent for all travel-related transactions, with smartphones edging out tablets 13.2 percent to 10.9 percent. Adyen noted that the travel sector still holds the highest percentage of mobile transaction of any sector and has been quick to embrace mobile applications and services that enable shoppers to transact on-the-go.

Mobile digital content purchases, including books, movies, music, software and services, increased from 15 percent to 16.5 percent. Of all the sectors covered, only gaming showed an overall decline in mobile purchases, to 8.5 percent down from 9 percent. Smartphones, however, continue to be the platform of choice, representing 6.7 percent of mobile gaming transactions.

"Mobile commerce continued its significant growth with a 27 percent increase in transactions over the last four months, and double-digit growth across almost every sector," Roelant Prins, chief commerce officer for Adyen, said in a statement. "As our data sample increases in size and scope, clear patterns for mobile purchases are emerging–such as the increasing importance of tablet for retailers and smartphone payment for the ticketing industry. Armed with this data, merchants can tailor their sales strategies to increase mobile conversions."

Apple iOS devices (the iPhone and iPad) accounted for nearly 75 percent of all mobile transactions on Adyen’s platform, and Android devices were responsible for nearly 25 percent of mobile transactions. Windows Mobile captured 0.6 percent of all mobile transactions to BlackBerry’s 0.3 percent. However, the report noted that in the last three months, Windows Mobile grew rapidly, with purchases made from the platform increasing by 20 percent.

From a payment perspective, Nokia hardware is leading the number of purchases made on Windows Mobile (81 percent), with HTC (13 percent), Samsung (4 percent), LG and others (2 percent) trailing far behind. The report also projected Nokia’s share of Windows Mobile payments transactions and Windows Mobile devices would increase slightly when Microsoft phases out the other operating systems supported by Nokia. Currently, 77 percent of mobile purchases on Nokia devices are made through Windows Mobile. The remainder is divided between Symbian (15 percent), Nokia Proprietary (6 percent) and MeeGo (2 percent).

Tablet use in mobile commerce continues to grow steadily, and has surpassed smartphone use in Asia and South America. In Europe, tablet use has nearly caught up to smartphones, representing an 8.4 percent share of total transactions to the smartphone’s 9.7 percent. In North America, smartphones are still the primary mobile transaction device, with 10.8 percent of total transactions through the phone and nearly 5.8 percent through a tablet. In Asia, tablet use has eclipsed smartphones, but in South America, tablet transactions (2.8 percent) are twice that of smartphones (1.4 percent).