Apple mops up mobile payments market
iPhone devices account for a third of online transactions
iPhone devices account for more than one in three browser-based mobile transactions, and are used for 10% of all global online transactions, according to new figures published by payment specialist Adyen.
In the company’s quarterly Mobile Payments Index, which tracks browser-based mobile payment data across Adyen’s global customer base, the company reports that 35.6% of all browser-based transactions are made using iPhone mobile devices. The iPhone’s share of global online transactions has increased from 8.6% to 10.2%.
Conversely, having once dominated the mobile payment scene with almost 50% market share in March 2013, iPad transactions now account for just 28.5% of all browser-based mobile transactions. Browser-based payments on Android smartphones have been growing roughly in parallel with the iPhone since September 2014. Overall, mobile’s total share of online payments is up from 27.2% in Q1 2015 to 28.7% in Q2.
The Adyen MPI also shows that in terms of transaction volume, smartphones dominate, increasing their lead from 61.8% of all mobile transactions in Q1 to a total of 64.1% in Q2. This is not only due to the iPhone: Android smartphones continue to grow their share of mobile transaction volume, increasing from 27.2% in the first quarter of 2015, to 28.3%. By contrast, the use of Android tablets over the same period has dropped from 38.2% in Q1 2015 to 35.9% as of June 2015.
For the first time, this quarter the Mobile Payments Index tracked average transaction value by device type. It found that shoppers using an iPad spend an average of £75 per transaction, significantly higher than the ATV for Android tablets at £61. ATV across smartphone operating systems echoed this trend, with iPhones having an ATV of £54 compared to an Android ATV of £49.
“The continued rise in popularity of the iPhone for making online purchases, coupled with the higher ATV from shoppers using iOS, suggest that businesses – especially those that classify themselves as premium brands – should target this valuable demographic in particular,” said Roelant Prins, chief commercial officer at Adyen. “Apple Pay, as it becomes available in more markets, represents a great opportunity for businesses to fulfil this as it enables them to deliver a seamless payment experience to iOS users.”
Against the backdrop of the steady rise of smartphone transaction volume, when it comes to physical goods (including items such as clothing, furniture, appliances and groceries) mobile shoppers still prefer to buy on tablets. In fact, 19% of online transactions for physical goods are on a tablet, compared to 12% on a smartphone.
However, for digital goods (including games, services like club memberships, hotel reservations, and tickets), the opposite is true, with smartphones accounting for 26% of online payments, up from 21% at the beginning of the year. By contrast, only 8% of digital goods were bought on a tablet this quarter.
In terms of regions, Europe led the way in Q2 (30.4%), followed by North America (26.7%) and Asia (21.4%). All these regions increased their share of mobile payments by approximately one percentage point from last quarter.
In terms of individual markets, the UK continues to leave the rest of the world in its wake. In Q2 2015, 44.8% of online payments in the UK were made using a mobile device, up almost 2 percentage points from the beginning of the year. If the current trend persists, the UK may surpass the 50% mark for mobile transactions midway through 2016.
“The big news dominating payments in the UK this quarter is the launch of Apple Pay,” said Myles Dawson, UK country manager, Adyen. “Our findings show that with the sky-high popularity of mobile payments and high penetration of iPhones in the market, in the UK Apple Pay offers a unique opportunity for businesses to connect with an affluent shopper demographic that is already used to making purchases by mobile.”
