A Look at the Global Evolution of Direct Carrier Billing

It's no accident that Google has chosen to expand its partnerships in India, where mobile phones far outstrip bank accounts. According to a global market report by Fortumo, called Direct Carrier Billing in 2016, Asia Pacific is set to overtake Latin America as the region with the largest transaction volume in carrier billing in 2017.

DCB volume in India grew by 175 percent in 2016 with a potential for further triple-digit expansion. With a population of 1.3 billion, the country has an estimated one billion mobile phone subscribers. However, smartphone penetration is just 20 percent. As Indians replace their old mobiles with smartphones, DCB is likely to become a major payment method.

The Fortumo report also highlights the Philippines and Australia, which together with India are the countries with the top growth markets in the Asia Pacific region.

At present, mobile phone billing, as the folks at Apple (AAPL) call DCB, is available to customers of its iTunes Store, App Store and iBooks Store who live in Belgium, Germany, Japan, Norway, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Taiwan and the United Arab Emirates. It's worth noting that the United States isn't on the list.

For the most part, Net Element is among the first businesses in the United States to offer DCB services, though companies like First Data Corp. could awaken to the opportunity and follow suit.

First Data (FDC) is a global payment technology company best known for its STAR inter-bank network. The company reportedly handles 45% of all U.S. credit and debit card transactions, but expansion there has been slow. First Data (FDC) is scheduled to release its fourth-quarter results before the market opens on February 13.

San Francisco-based Square, Inc. (SQ) - creator of the Square Reader that attaches to mobile phones and allows consumers to use debit and credit cards, as well as the Square Register point-of-sale software that can be used in lieu of traditional card terminals and cash registers - is also evolving the broader digital payment landscape. The company recently announced (http://nnw.fm/lMw7q) "a limited-time program that will allow small businesses to process more than $12,000 in Apple Pay payments for free (a $350 value) as an incentive for them to encourage their customers to use the payment method."

PayPal (PYPL) is also moving the scale toward DCB in the United States. Back in 2012 at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the company announced its plans to work with carriers and digital merchants to expand carrier payments. Today the company offers its Tele2 product, enabling subscribers to "top-up" their PayPal balances through their mobile phone bills - meaning the users can transfer money from their bank accounts into their PayPal (PYPL) accounts.

Fortumo forecasts that, while Latin America boasts the biggest transaction volume for carrier billing, Asia Pacific is likely to take the leading spot in 2017. Perhaps one snag for DCB in the United States is consumer concern over data security. However, as an increasing number of consumers abroad take advantage of the conveniences of DCB, the market on American soil is ripe for companies like Net Element (NETE) to take a leading start.

1. Android Headlines: http://nnw.fm/V4c1V

For more information on Net Element (NASDAQ: NETE) visit: http://www.netelement.com

About NetworkNewsWire

NetworkNewsWire (NNW) provides news aggregation and syndication, enhanced press release services and a full array of social communication solutions. As a multifaceted financial news and distribution company with an extensive team of journalists and writers, NNW is uniquely positioned to best serve private and public companies who need to reach a wide audience of investors, consumers, journalists and the general public. NNW has an ever-growing distribution network of more than 5,000 key syndication outlets across the country. By cutting through the overload of information in today's market, NNW brings its clients unparalleled visibility, recognition and brand awareness. NNW is where news, content and information converge.

NetworkNewsWire (NNW)

New York, New York

http://www.NetworkNewsWire.com  

Please see full disclaimers on the NetworkNewsWire website: http://NNW.fm/Disclaimer  

DISCLAIMER:  NetworkNewsWire (NNW) is source of content listed above.  FN Media Group, LLC (FNM), is a third party publisher and news dissemination service provider, which disseminates electronic information through multiple online media channels. FNM is NOT affiliated with NNW or any company mentioned herein.  The commentary, views and opinions expressed in this release by NNW are solely those of NNW and are not shared by and do not reflect in any manner the views or opinions of FNM.  NNW & FNM is not liable for any investment decisions by its readers or subscribers.  FNM and its affiliated companies are a news dissemination and financial marketing solutions provider and are NOT a registered broker/dealer/analyst/adviser, holds no investment licenses and may NOT sell, offer to sell or offer to buy any security.  FNM was not compensated by any public company mentioned herein to disseminate this press release.

NNW & FNM HOLDS NO SHARES OF ANY COMPANY NAMED IN THIS RELEASE.

This release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. "Forward-looking statements" describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as "may", "future", "plan" or "planned", "will" or "should", "expected," "anticipates", "draft", "eventually" or "projected". You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, and other risks identified in a company's annual report on Form 10-K or 10-KSB and other filings made by such company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should consider these factors in evaluating the forward-looking statements included herein, and not place undue reliance on such statements.  The forward-looking statements in this release are made as of the date hereof and NNW & FNM undertakes no obligation to update such statements.

Media Contact e-mail:  
FN Media Group, LLC
editor@financialnewsmedia.com   
(954)345-0611

SOURCE NetworkNewsWire