Although the holiday shopping season has become synonymous with crowded malls and waiting in tremendous lineups once the perfect items have been found, mobile commerce is predicted to begin a sizeable change in this tradition, this year. Moreover, shoppers will also be using mobile commerce to be able to hunt for the products that they want and find the best prices so that they can buy them in store, reducing the amount of time that they will actually spend going from one brick and mortar store, so that they can beeline to exactly what they want. Not only will they …

It is 11 years since the first mobile payment service was launched in Africa, and it is now transforming economies across the continent. However, in the first five years or so, it was a solution in search of problems, with a scattering of case studies showing how it could make a difference. Most people associate mobile payments with M-PESA in Kenya, but it was Zambia that really got the ball rolling, when Celpay was launched there by Fundamo, a South African payment technology company now owned by Visa. Celpay was most famous for one thing: it allowed SAB truck drivers …

Jamba Juice is testing Isis' mobile wallet, but to convince consumers that the mobile wallet is worth it, the companies are going to incentivize the payments solution with free smoothies. Later this year, the companies are going to give away up to one million free smoothies to consumers who pay with Isis. The giveaway will begin after Isis's national launch, and it will only apply for participating United States locations. "Isis and Jamba Juice simply want to get as many juices, smoothies and Isis mobile wallets into as many hands as possible," said James White, CEO of Jamba Juice, Emeryville, …

Mint, an Australian mobile payments company, has been negotiating with three of the largest banks in Australia concerning the launch of a new mobile commerce platform. The company intends for the platform to emulate a similar platform designed by one of the leading companies in the mobile commerce field: Square. U.S.-based Square boasts of one of the most widely used and successful mobile payments services in the world, making it an attractive example for Mint's initiative.

Mobile payments have yet to reach critical mass, but a cursory look at the dining space suggests that restaurant operators are ready to lead. A number of major quick service restaurant brands have made moves recently - names like McDonald's, Subway, Dairy Queen, Checker's, Rally's, Sonic and Jamba Juice. They follow others such as Dunkin' Donuts and Burger King that long ago implemented mobile payments systems. With that in mind, mobile payments were a hot topic during this week's Fast Casual Executive Summit in New Orleans, where a panel of business leaders sat down to discuss the issue.

Macy's is positioning its mobile application as a digital personal assistant for holiday shoppers that can help them plan their shopping trip in advance and find their way once in store. Beginning Nov. 21, users of the Macy's app will be able to view the retailer's Black Friday specials on their mobile devices and create customized shopping lists that can be edited and shared with friends. Mobile users who want a first look at select Black Friday specials right now can visit Macy's Pinterest page. "This year is going to be huge, and Macy's is one of those advanced mobile …

Dilma Rousseff, the President of Brazil, has now given approval to a brand new law that brings regulations to the mobile payments sector into the country in order to guide the businesses and consumers who wish to take part in this type of transaction. The law, which is number 12,865, has created a new form of legal identity, now known as a "payments institution". This entity will receive its regulation from the Brazilian Central Bank. It will meant that consumers in Brazil will be able to take advantage of mobile payments and banking services from banks, financial institutions, and merchants.

eBay reported third-quarter earnings after the bell Wednesday, and the report was saved by revenue increases across the portfolio. Collectively, the online retail giant reported a net income of $689 million, or 53 cents per share. Non-GAAP earnings were 64 cents per share on revenue of $3.9 billion, up 14 percent annually. Wall Street was looking for earnings of 63 cents per share on a revenue of $3.9 billion. The bright spot during the third quarter was mobile, reaffirming once again CEO John Donahoe's big bet on the medium. Mobile commerce volume jumped by 75 percent in Q3, with 3.2 …

HMV's future looked uncertain at the start of the year, but a rescue acquisition by Hilco Capital in April means 140 stores are still open for business. However, the music retailer has now looked beyond bricks-and-mortar and online to sell CDs and bring home the bacon, now unveiling a digital music download store for Android and iOS. The mission is to capitalise on the growing trend of mobile commerce and rising use of smartphones. Just yesterday, data found the UK is the European leader in m-commerce, while ten per cent of Brits prefer shopping via their devices instead of in …

Square, the mobile commerce platform dreamed up by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, is digging deep into Canada. The company recently announced plans to expand its presence and open up an permanent office in the Kitchener-Waterloo area. Square's services are directly targeted to small business owners who are looking for an affordable and convenient way to accept debit and credit card payments. Square takes 2.75% of every credit card transaction, which is standard, but the Square Register point-of-sale platform, card reader dongle, and app (iPhone, iPad or Android) are all available for free. The service launched here last year and Dorsey …