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According to their recent report, Gartner Group analysts believe that swipe-and-pay NFC systems like Google Wallet and Isis will not take off in the US for many years.
The firm says that the market for mobile payments is growing way too slowly, compared to what was expected, and that the US just isn’t ready for Near Field Communication (aka NFC) payment systems. They say that the figures wont look bad at first sight though, with worldwide payment users will surpass 141.1 Million in 2011, which would be up 38.2 Percent from 2010, with mobile payment volume forecast to be about $86.1 Billion totally.
Sandy Shen, research director at Gartner, said:
“In developed markets, companies are trumpeting the prospects of NFC without realizing the complexity of the service model. We believe mass market adoption of NFC payments is at least four years away. The biggest hurdle is the need to change user behavior by convincing consumers to pay with mobile phones instead of cash and cards.”
They go on to state that things look a little better in developing markets in Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, where money transfers and prepaid top-ups are seen as the killer apps, and account for 54 Percent and 32 Percent respectively, of all transactions in 2011.
With Google’s Nexus S boasting NFC, as well as some of Nokia’s recent handsets like the C7, and rumors of the next iPhone having NFC, the manufacturers certainly are ready. Looks like the rest of the world isnt though. Well, apart from Japan that is.
[via Gartner]
Clinton is currently based in New Delhi, India and is executive editor for UnleashThePhones. He is responsible for all editorial decisions, and covers all forms of Mobile and mobile-related accessories.
Cj is addicted to caffeine, social media, and technology. Always up for a good conversation, you can reach him through the contact form, his website, on Google Plus 
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