subject: Mobile Billing And Payment Options For Small And Medium Businesses [print this page] The continuous proliferation of mobile phones and other similar devices has made it possible for mobile payment options to become feasible for many businesses and utilities. The type of payment scheme available will often depend on the technology that will be used but generally speaking, mobile payment schemes can be used by most businesses. Here are some of the basic ideas behind this kind of payment option and how businesses apply them.
Premium SMS Systems
SMS stands for short message service and is more popularly known as text messaging. Pay by SMS systems often involve sending a payment request through a text message and the charge will often be credited to the phone bill, prepaid balance, or online wallet of the consumer. This type of mobile paymentssystem, coupled with MMS or multimedia messaging service based payment system is the most popular option because SMS and MMS are available options on most mobile phone systems and do not require additional features or specific phone models to become effective and successful.
Direct Mobile Billing Options
In direct mobile billing the customer all purchase are billed directly to the mobile phone account of the user. This makes it a great option for customers without credit/debit cards or access to other payment solutions like Paypal. Most direct billing options work through a two-step authentication process which will involve a user selected PIN code and a one-time use password sent to the mobile phone itself. This type of payment system has been used effectively for online games, mobile services, and even utilities like power companies.
Mobile Web Payments
Mobile phone units that can access the internet through WAP or other connection protocols like 3g and Wi-Fi can often be used for mobile payments. If the mobile phone account is linked, the user can charge transactions direct through the network operator. Other options like credit cards and online payment solutions can also be accessed through this procedure. Users that have online wallets through popular services like Paypal, Google Wallet, and Amazon Payments can often easily access their accounts when using web based mobile payment options.
Todays technology has created new and innovative ways for consumers to pay for both online and offline products and services through their mobile phones. By offering services that can be paid for through mobile services, businesses can place themselves in unique opportunity to attract new customers, especially the youth demographic, which are highly dependent to their mobile phones. Mobile payments open up a new avenue for income and accessibility and having good experiences with these new payment alternatives help businesses get ready to use newer technologies being developed for mobile payments including NFCs, NSDTs, and Direct Carrier/Bank transactions.
