Recent technology improvements are lowering the cost and enhancing the performance of mobile payment systems, paving the way to more widespread adoption of mobile commerce services in both developed and emerging economies, according to the latest report from Unstrung Insider, a paid research service from Unstrung and TechWeb's Light Reading.

Dial M for Commerce: Mobile Payment Market Gains Traction analyzes the m-commerce sector, providing an overview of the market - including how m-commerce works, how various solutions are developing, and the potential applications for mobile payments. It identifies vertical markets that various vendors are tapping into and global areas of interest for the service and examines what to expect for the next 12 to 18 months in the m-commerce market, including challenges the industry faces. Additionally, the funding, acquisitions, and partnerships of vendors are discussed. Finally, the report provides a comparative analysis of nine of the top vendors in the m-commerce sector.

"With retailers, banks, and other consumer-driven businesses scrambling to figure out how to make their products and services more appealing, the possibilities of m-commerce beckon for a variety of reasons," notes Denise Culver, research analyst with Unstrung Insider and author of the report. "The technology has become much simpler to use, easier to access across virtually all platforms, and provides a breadth and depth of services that shames the first applications espoused in the days of smart cards and mobile phones the size of shoe boxes."

Allowing an alternate way for customers to buy and use products or services can be extremely profitable for those businesses that enable m-commerce technologies, Culver says. "In a new world economy where all businesses are looking for ways to reinvent their goods and services so that their customers find them as appealing as possible, creating a new route to the customer is a valid concept," she notes. "M-commerce makes use of resources that people already have and utilize, which is key to its success."

Key findings of Dial M for Commerce: Mobile Payment Market Gains Traction include:

* The U.S. is one of the fastest-growing markets for m-commerce, despite having a highly developed payment infrastructure and greater concern over security issues.

* Security continues to be one of the biggest concerns plaguing m-commerce, followed closely by a need for consumer education.

* Defining the various components that constitute m-commerce remains a challenge for the industry.

* Several vendors have recently announced or are developing m-banking applications

* Increasing value-added revenues beyond that of ringtones is seen as one of the many benefits provided by m-commerce.

* Peer-to-peer payments will be one of the hottest m-commerce applications for the next 12 to 18 months.