SAP Study Shows Consumers Around the Globe Ready for Next-Generation Mobile Commerce Services

WALLDORF, Germany, Sept. 24, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) today announced additional results of a study conducted in 17 countries, highlighting an unmet demand for mobile commerce services, with more than eight out of 10 consumers asking for more mobile interactions with banks, telcos, retailers, utilities and other businesses. While the findings indicate that consumers want more commerce services through mobile phones universally, the drivers or barriers to further adoption of mobile purchasing vary within different countries and industries. Emerging markets such as South Africa, Saudi Arabia and China show a greater pace of change, with 96 percent of respondents expressing a desire to use their mobile to buy goods or services, compared to 59 percent in mature markets.* Overall, the study found that consumers would be more likely to increase their use of mobile commerce services if they had greater choice of payment methods (64 percent), if mobile payments were accepted by more retailers (51 percent), received regular order updates (41 percent) and if they were further incentivized by brands and services (32 percent).

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The research shows consumers are using their mobile phones for an increasing range of mobile commerce services, including researching products, responding to promotions, customer service inquiries and submitting meter readings to utility companies. The study also reveals important insights about what holds consumers back from using more mobile commerce and services. Nearly half of the respondents globally (46 percent) indicated the hassle of having to enter a lot of personal information, security concerns (45 percent) and lack of Internet access at the time of transaction (43 percent) were factors.

"Consumers are now ready and demanding more mobile commerce services, and they also expect to engage with their mobile phones more simply and effectively," said Anthony Reynolds, senior vice president, Worldwide Mobile Sales and Solutions at SAP. "While progress is being made, companies must make a collective effort to provide consumers ease of use and benefits for mobile interactions and transactions, such as available technology, security and incentives. On its current trajectory, mobile occupies a tempting combination of an all-in-one communication channel, loyalty card, cash, location tracker and credit card, offering brands and companies the opportunity to connect to consumers either exclusively via mobile or as part of a multi-channel mix."

Consumers Want More Than E-Mail and Texting Via Mobile
The study highlights a shift from a mobile-centric world to a mobile commerce-centric mindset, in terms of the type of activities carried out via mobile, with 63 percent of consumers now using their mobile phone for activities other than just making calls and texting. Half of mobile phone users (50 percent) access the internet at least once a day via their mobile and nearly one third (32 percent) have used it to purchase products or services. The ability to use their mobile device any time of the day (51 percent), on the go (51 percent), with speed (50 percent) and with convenience (50 percent) are seen as clear benefits behind this increasing consumer adoption.

As available technology leads to growing levels of sophistication, consumers around the world are increasingly turning to mobile phones as a cornerstone for communication and transactions. Eighty percent of consumers agree that businesses should use any available technology to make life easier for their customers.

Industry Highlights
Research shows that ease of use is a core principle that will accelerate overall user adoption in retail, telecommunications and banking industries.

• Banking
  • Excluding voice calls, half of mobile owners turn to their mobile devices to pay a bill (55 percent), make a bank transfer (52 percent) and set up a new account (48 percent)
  • Providing services that are lower cost (25 percent) and personalized (22 percent) will encourage mobile owners to begin making or make more bank transfers through their mobile phone
  • To learn more, see: "Newsbyte: SAP Research Shows Mobile Consumers Demand Mobile Banking 2.0 as They Embrace More Complex Transactions"
• Retail
  • Retail is a key focus of mobile purchases with entertainment services (43 percent), music downloads (40 percent), books or e-books (40 percent) and attire (39 percent) all typical purchases
  • Users are encouraged to buy goods using their mobile phone by lower cost services (29 percent), exclusive offers (25 percent) and coupons (22 percent)
• Telco:
  • Free minutes, texts and Web use (24 percent), personalized services (22 percent) and lower cost services (21 percent) will encourage consumers to use their mobile to check usage data for their mobile account
  • More than half of users (52 percent) agree that their mobile payment activity will increase when they have more confidence in mobile security, with 39 percent requiring more confidence in how to use their mobile as a payment method

To learn more, download the full report here or explore the interactive data visualization website: http://sapmobileconsumertrends.com/. For more information, visit the SAP Newsroom.

Research Methodology
Interviews were conducted with 12,424 adults aged 18+ who own a mobile phone (basic or smartphone). Respondents completed an online survey in March and April 2013. Research conducted by Loudhouse Consultancy, an independent research agency based in London.

Country Breakdown
U.S.: 1072: EMEA: UK 1159, South Africa 638, France 513, Germany 523, Russia 1043, Egypt 500, Saudi Arabia 502, Spain 564; LATAM: Brazil 1012, Mexico 513, Colombia 514, Chile 583; APAC: China 1000, India 1050, Japan 651, Australia 587

*Emerging markets: South Africa, India, Saudi Arabia, Chile, China, Mexico; Mature markets: Japan, U.S., Germany, France, Australia, UK

About SAP
As market leader in enterprise application software, SAP (NYSE: SAP) helps companies of all sizes and industries run better. From back office to boardroom, warehouse to storefront, desktop to mobile device – SAP empowers people and organizations to work together more efficiently and use business insight more effectively to stay ahead of the competition. SAP applications and services enable more than 248,500 customers to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and grow sustainably. For more information, visit www.sap.com.

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For more information, press only:
Margherita Di Cerbo, +442076085358, GMT; [email protected]
Amisha Gandhi, + (415) 341-7101, PDT; [email protected]
SAP Press Office, +49 (6227) 7-46315, CET; +1 (610) 661-3200, EDT; [email protected]

SOURCE SAP AG