MAC Cosmetics is maximizing its direct mail with QR codes that drive commerce and sign-ups for the makeup brand's SMS program. Consumers who shop MAC stores may be sent a thank you postcard with a QR code that links them to the retailer's Web site when scanned, where they can view "how to" videos and browse and buy products. That is just one way that MAC initiates a sales transaction from static print collateral.

Dating application SinglesAroundMe has a patent pending for a location-shifting technology intended to help developers ease privacy concerns for consumers that has the potential to significantly change how marketers geotarget on mobile. When it comes to technology and mobile commerce, new innovations are praised and questioned, sought after and sometimes pushed aside. This is the quandary marketers face as developers, consumers and government agencies come to loggerheads over who should know where consumers are and why.

According to the results of a recent mobile security protection forecast report from Infonetics Research, there will be a number of new efforts put into place in order to help to do battle with the increasing amount of spam and number of threats from unethical marketers and cyber criminals. According to the Infonetics Research principal analyst for security, Jeff Wilson, the popularity of the use of SMS and MMS has increased considerably over the last ten years. However, it is only just now that carriers around the world are starting to pay attention to mobile security protection and the deployment …

Japan has long been heralded as technologically advanced in many ways, especially when it comes to the mobile space. The country has become one of the most prominent markets when it comes to mobile payments. Japanese consumers and businesses alike have expressed enthusiasm when it comes to mobile commerce and this has lead to a great deal of future potential in the mobile market. A new report from Celent, a financial research firm, highlights Japan's mobile payments potential. According to the report, Japanese commerce is shifting toward the Internet. E-commerce has already become quite popular with consumers, especially those shopping …

O2 has told customers it will end support for its digital wallet just 18 months after launch. The mobile operator, owned by Telefnica, announced in a post on its website that it will cease the O2 Wallet service as of 31 March 2013."When we launched the O2 Wallet 18 months ago we were one of the first mobile wallets around. Since then lots has changed for us, the market and our customers," a statement read. "So, we've decided to close the O2 Wallet to give us time to look into new and better ways to help people manage their money …

Monetate, a market research firm, has released a new report that highlights the growth of e-commerce and mobile shopping. Over the past few years, consumers have been growing more reliant on their mobile devices. Smartphones and tablets are being used for just about everything in a consumer's daily life, including shopping. Mobile commerce has become quite attractive to many consumers as it represents a more convenient way to shop for and purchase products. According to the report from Monetate, e-commerce traffic from smartphones and tablet grew by 3% during the last quarter of 2013

Starbucks continues to lead merchants in mobile commerce, raking in $1.3 billion in pre-paid cards during the fourth quarter, and with innovative programs, such as "Tweet-a-Coffee," which is just kicking off in Canada. The international coffee chain's mobile campaigns seem to be as addictive to consumers as its coffee. Starbucks' winning combination of loyalty, rewards and simplicity of service is the key.

Bell and RBC have been testing their mobile payment service since last May and it's now live. The RBC Wallet, "powered by RBC Secure Cloud" is a "mobile commerce service" that allows Bell and RBC customers (debit or credit) to make small-ticket payments from a mobile device. There are some current limitations, as it is only available to those who have the Samsung Galaxy S3 or Samsung Galaxy S4 running Jelly Bean "with the correct NFC-enabled SIM card." There is no need to download another app as it simply is an add-on to the current RBC Mobile Android app. You …

According to the most recent Financial Stability Report from the Reserve Bank of India, the uptake of Indian mobile payments and banking has been promising, and yet considerably slower than had been expected over the span of the last three years. The only banks in the country that can offer services over smartphones and tablets are those that are licensed. According to the Central Bank in the country, in order to be able to offer Indian mobile paymentshttp://www.mobilecommercepress.com/mobile-banking-rise-australia/853413/, the institutions that wish to provide them to consumers must not only have a license from the Reserve Bank of India, but …

Amazon.com Inc. is the No. 1 mobile destination among mass merchants for U.S. smartphone owners accessing the mobile web and mobile apps, finds research giant Nielsen. In fact, a majority of smartphone owners who accessed the web or apps on their devices in October 2013 shopped Amazon.com. 53% of mobile web/app users in October shopped Amazon on their smartphones, Nielsen says. That adds up to 76.1 million unique monthly visitors, Nielsen says. On average, shoppers spent 38 minutes and one second on the m-commerce site and primary app of Amazon.com, No. 2 in the 2014 Internet Retailer Mobile 500. Amazon's …