Retailers prioritize mobile technology innovation over risk of fraud

ELK GROVE VILLAGE, USA: Leading mobile point-of-sale (POS) device provider Infinite Peripherals, Inc. (IPC) has introduced the results of the Infinite Peripherals 2014 Payment Technology Trends Survey, an annual study of online and in-store retailers, app developers, mobile device manufacturers and resellers.

Sixty-seven per cent of respondents to the inaugural survey report that mobile technology innovation is the overwhelming priority of retailers, driving payment technology trends. The risk of fraud and criminal payment activity is a distant second at 38 per cent. Thirty-five per cent of respondents confirmed that customer preferences will drive retail priorities, above the influence of payment providers (29 per cent) or payment legislation (16 per cent).

Given this focus on mobility and consumer preferences, it is not surprising that respondents expect swipe on mobile POS device to dominate the payment technology market in the future. It is rated highest by respondents (30 per cent) who were asked which single payment technology they thought would lead the market over the next three years.

Swipe at register technology is expected to remain the most utilized payment technology for only 17 per cent of respondents in three years. And, when it comes to security, 23 per cent of respondents are concerned that swipe at register payments will be unable to keep up with the evolving threat of fraud and theft in the future. Only four per cent of respondents are concerned about the ability of swipe on mobile POS device to meet or exceed security expectations in three years.

"Resoundingly, mobile payment technologies are referenced as the most exciting and secure innovation in the sector and are seen as the consumer's champion payment technology," said Andrew Graham, president of IPC. "As consumer demands continue to drive developments in payment technologies, successful retailers will pay close attention not just to what their consumers buy, but how they prefer to buy."

Key finding: Consumer use of mobile technology will drive future of payment trends

* 69 per cent of respondents see the increased consumer use of mobile technology in everyday life as the single-most influential factor in future payment technology trends.

* 52 per cent also see an increasing demand from consumers for mobile shopping as driving payment technology trends in the next three years.