Volume 13, Number 2 Article by Mohammed Naved Khan , Mohd. Nishat Faisal June 2001
Mobile Commerce: The Next Dimension :
A revolution is occurring in the computing and communication industries. The integration of the wireless networks with the Internet is evolutionising the way millions of people around the world conduct their businesses and utilise their leisure. The development of ‘smart’ wireless information devices (WIDs) in general and mobile phones in particular is opening up new vistas for business. Mobile commerce or m-commerce, the wireless avatar of e-commerce, is the result of the fusion of mobile communication with electronic commerce. M-commerce will change the way we do business, transact our banking, access entertainment, manage travel, and conduct our personal finances. It is making the traditional office obsolete except as a central repository of data, communication and ideas. Mobile phones can serve as a very powerful medium for one-to-one marketing. With access to consumer demographics and psycho-graphics, mobile operators will achieve unforeseen profitability by turning themselves into M-commerce portals and concentrating on value-added services. Naved Khan and Nishat Faisal provide a description of the M-commerce matrix and detail the technologies powering it: WAP, Bluetooth and 3G Networks. They also outline the emerging business model, describe the global scenario for M-commerce, and go on to examine the Indian experience. While a PC is a distant dream to most Indians, the mobile phone has caught the fancy of the Indian consumer. The mobile phone culture is fast spreading and represents an enormous opportunity for conducting business. Cellular phone usage is now in the range of 400 minutes per person per month. In India there are two distinct categories of players in the m-commerce arena: service/content providers, and the second is of WAP gateway/server/software providers. As markets get more competitive and customers more demanding, Indian operators, taking a cue from the experiences of their counterparts in Europe and in the Asia-Pacific region, should launch WAP enabled nationwide services through interconnection of their networks so as to support wireless Internet access and work jointly towards integrating this new technology with existing business practices and systems, to reap benefits and also provide seamless user experience. Khan and Faisal examine in detail the security issues and solutions, the limitations of the technology, and future prospects; and suggest ways of harnessing our tremendous M-commerce potential.
Reprint No 01201