Korean Shop By Phone Technology Coming to America
It looks like America will be introduced with cell phone technology that is currently being perfected in Korea and Japan:
In South Korea, E-commerce features already let consumers pay for things using their cell phones. Many of the phones have been integrated with banking systems so people already are buying groceries and soft drinks from vending machines with them.
Japanese consumers also use “wallet phones” with contactless FeliCa cards from NTT DoCoMo, Japan’s leading mobile communications company. Wallet phones are not just used as credit cards—they can contain entrance tickets, metro tickets, loyalty cards, air tickets, and employee ID cards, according to SmartTrust’s recently published “Mobile Trends” guide.
The technology will likely make its debut in the U.S. in the next six to 18 months, says Osmo Hautanen, CEO of Magnolia Broadband Inc., a chip developer that puts “smart” antennas into cell phones sold by top service providers in Asia.
In fact, earlier this month Motorola unveiled its M-Wallet product, which will let people make purchases using their cell phones. Additionally, the technology will allow merchants to issue virtual loyalty or gift cards to customers’ phones. Motorola says the M-Wallet will work with almost any device or cellular network.
There are some draw backs though:
That means cell phones will become much more valuable not only because they’ll come with more capabilities, but also because they will contain sensitive information like payment mechanisms. “People will value and guard their phones the way they guard their wallets,” says Valentine. So, losing a phone in a taxi will a much bigger deal than it is today.
Another problem I foresee is that in the states you can’t get a cell phone signal in many buildings which will effect your ability to use your phone to shop. What if you are in a roaming zone; do have to pay extra then to shop? I think I will just stick to using my debit card.
