Mobilebeyond

Mobile phone consumer research is both an art and science, especially among smartphone users who are totally immersed and engaged with the growing number of sophisticated handsets on the market. Phones are an intimate part of their lives. In September, 2009, Joy Liuzzo with InsightExpress, a digital marketing research firm, appeared on MobileBeyond to discuss […] The post Mobile Phone Consumer Research Reveals New Trends first appeared on MobileBeyond.

For anyone born before the online and mobile phone dictionary, the dictionary was a thick, heavy book kids lugged to school for reference. Adults kept a dictionary in a book shelf. The print was tiny, the pages thin and the definitions short. Now virtually everyone in the U.S. has a cell phone with access to […] The post Mobile Phone Dictionary Helps Users Find Words first appeared on MobileBeyond.

As I spoke with Michael Becker, co-founder of mCordis and The Connected Marketer Institute, it reminded me of our first podcast interview over five years ago. Then we talked about mobile marketing and powerful new wireless devices that would forever change human communications. He said “‘…mobile is the foundation of all communications going forward”–whatever the mobile […] The post Michael Becker Connected Marketer Institute Podcast first appeared on MobileBeyond.

Your new mobile app was just released to the app stores. You chew your fingernails. Lots of pressure from the boss. The company wants a big hit. You ask yourself: “Will the app be fast enough in the U.S., India?…Is mobile app acceleration across the network going to work? Sweat beads up on your forehead… […] The post Neumob’s Mobile App Acceleration – Jay Hinman Podcast first appeared on MobileBeyond.

The Ebola Care App, available free from Journey, a mobile applications developer, enables health workers to monitor and collect patient data in West South Africa. AppsAgainstEbola, Journey’s website, describes its genesis, capabilities and benefits. Running on inexpensive Android phones, the Ebola Care App will improve the timeliness, accuracy and accessibility of field data for health care decision-makers […] The post Ebola Care App Raises Hope in West Africa first appeared on MobileBeyond.

GCash Mobile money services, like others in African countries, the Mideast, Bangladesh and India, are popular and growing quickly in developing countries. As MobileBeyond’s financial inclusion series has documented, mobile money empowers the unbanked to send and receive money, top off phone minutes, pay bills, finance solar power, gain insurance protection, enable merchant transactions and establish […] The post GCash Mobile Money Services Help Filopinos Prosper first appeared on MobileBeyond.

Obopay India sits at a crossroads. Someone wrote that if mobile money players didn’t face the shackles of government banking regulations, the mobile money industry in India could generate $250 BILLION U.S. DOLLARS monthly. With a population of 1.3 billion people, 64% of whom are unbanked, and over 904 million mobile phones, the mobile financial services opportunity in India […] The post Obopay India Fights for 904 Million Mobile Customers first appeared on MobileBeyond.

As I spoke with Sanjiv Purushotham of MasterCard, I sensed his personal satisfaction working on MasterCard financial inclusion projects in Africa and the Mideast. He grew up in India, married, then took another MasterCard position in Singapore. A few years later, he jumped at another MasterCard opportunity in Dubai, one of the hot spots for entrepreneurs. Tall […] The post Mastercard Financial Inclusion Africa-Mideast first appeared on MobileBeyond.

bKash mobile money is also the story of Bangladesh, a war-torn country formed in 1971 after the Bangladesh Liberation War. But neither the horrors of that war–nor the poverty that enveloped the country since–has stopped the growth of mobile currency exchange. In fact, bKash is now the second largest mobile money company in the world by number […] The post bKash Mobile Money Growing in Bangladesh first appeared on MobileBeyond.

In a northern village of India, rural solar energy panels quietly produce clean energy, eliminating kerosene lamps that once polluted air and harmed health. Light bulbs shed their glow in the darkness of the night. Fans cool the hot, humid air. A light outside keeps children safe while chickens and cows produce income for families. […] The post Rural Solar Energy Lights India’s Future first appeared on MobileBeyond.

Are you an hourly worker paid 2-4 times a month? Then your employer is holding on to your wages waiting to give you your paycheck. Until payday, however, your company creates a “cash float” to pay its bills and maintain reserves.  Every company needs reserves–retailers, manufacturers and banks–especially small companies that don’t have high cash balances in accounts. […] The post Activehours CEO Says Employees Owed $2T first appeared on MobileBeyond.

People in Cambodia hear Wing mobile money vibrating on phones and cell towers everywhere. Anthony Perkins, Wing’s CEO and a ex-British guy, ponders and dreams about domestic and international money services. No, this is a fellow who’s not satisfied with mPESA-like mobile exchange. As developing nations move from financial exclusion to inclusion, Perkins believes that successful entrepreneurs research desired […] The post Wing Mobile Money Sizzles on Cambodia Cell Phones first appeared on MobileBeyond.

In 2010, a few entrepreneurs in the United States contemplated a mobile financial inclusion solution for Kenya. A land of 10 million people, the majority of the Kenya’s adult population carried ATM-like M-PESA cards.  But less than half the population had bank accounts. And until recently merchants lacked terminals to process payments. This made M-PESA useless for millions […] The post Mobile Financial Inclusion Grows Kenyan Economy first appeared on MobileBeyond.

What if you could purchase life or health insurance free from your wireless carrier or bank as easy as buying a ring tone? This may be the ultimate insurance financial inclusion tool in Africa and elsewhere. Buy X mobile minutes or deposit Y money in your bank to obtain cost-free insurance. Customers can opt-in by […] The post Insurance Financial Inclusion Thrives in Africa with MicroEnsure first appeared on MobileBeyond.

Mobile device security and BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) are hot growth sectors in the mobile industry. Dozens of vendors now offer numerous solutions to enterprise companies and SMB’s that prevent sensitive data from dripping into mobile devices. It’s challenging as podcast guest Ken Khouri of IBM Global Technology will tell you. When Apple announced […] The post Mobile Device Security in a BYOD Workforce first appeared on MobileBeyond.

Most people don’t want to throw away their credit, debit, discount, and other cards flooding their wallets and purses. People cling to these plastic icons like a crocodile holding its prey. What if you could use mobile merchant services instead? You can by using a smartphone. In our podcast interview, Shelley Plomske, VP of Product […] The post Mobile Merchant Services Improves Retail first appeared on MobileBeyond.

When Don Campbell talks about WordPress website themes, you feel there’s hope for small businesses on the Web. Don left Microsoft four years ago to start a slightly smaller company called Expand2Web. His popular SmallBiz Theme, running on WordPress,  puts to shame those $10,000 flashy “WOW!”websites that no one follows. WordPress Website Themes: Find a Niche […] The post WordPress Website Themes Democratize Small Business first appeared on MobileBeyond.

Speech voice recognition has progressed beyond talking elevators and primitive computer text-to-speech and recognition. Early personal computer dictation software started melting like Verizon flip phones. That gave Paul Macarelli, the “can you hear me now” Verizon guy, new television scripts. Many years later, Apple introduced its Mountain Lion Mac operating system with improved voice dictation […] The post Voice Recognition Makes Home Appliances Listen first appeared on MobileBeyond.

Like Farmville customer service? Having avoided Farmville for two months, I must tell you how delighted I feel this week. Zynga and its caring public service team reached out to me. Here’s the first email from the company’s VP of Player Advocacy and Service: “Hello Brian, We noticed that your Farmville game has been quiet for some […] The post Farmville Customer Service Gives TLC first appeared on MobileBeyond.

Some people think mobile ads are intrusive, apps for laggards, tablets are toys and Android Ice Cream Sandwich a silly name tied to Android OS. (That’s assuming they know Android refers to a smartphone operating system and not Data on Star Trek.) These folks are technophobes. But they’ve probably  never met Joy Liuzzo, mobile researcher […] The post Mobile Ads + Tablets + Ice Cream Sandwich + Carriers Vie for Money first appeared on MobileBeyond.