As that represented a 54% increase year-over-year, the state of the mobile financial services market is good.

“More people are turning to [...]]]> In the fourth quarter of 2010, 29.8 million Americans accessed financial services accounts — including bank, credit card, or brokerage — via their mobile device, according to new state-of-the-industry research from comScore.

As that represented a 54% increase year-over-year, the state of the mobile financial services market is good.

“More people are turning to the convenience of mobile devices for their financial-service needs, fueled in part by the adoption of smartphones, 3G devices and unlimited data plans,” said Sarah Lenart, comScore vice president. “The ubiquitous nature of mobile devices affords financial brands an important channel to reach and engage customers, whether it’s at home, work or on-the-go.”

In total, 29.8 million Americans accessed financial-service accounts via their mobile device — browser or application – during the fourth quarter of the year. 18.6 million users accessed their financial accounts via mobile browser during the same period — up 58% from the previous year — while 10.8 million accessed their accounts via applications — up 120%.

Text message represented the smallest access point for financial service audiences with 8.1 million users — up 35%.

“As brands compete for customer loyalty in this competitive market, marketers will need to focus on continually improving the mobile customer experience,” Lenart added.

Among mobile banking and credit card users, nearly half preferred going online via a fixed device as the primary way to access their accounts, with 47% of mobile banking customers and 44% of mobile credit card users doing so.

Mobile has become an increasingly important access channel — with 36% of mobile credit card users and 26% of mobile banking customers indicating it is their primary method of accessing their accounts. Only a small segment of these users listed speaking with a representative in person or on the phone as their primary access method, according to comScore.

ComScore also analyzed the reasons consumers cite for not utilizing their mobile devices for financial activities. The results indicated that preference for using a fixed online device topped the list for both smartphone and non-smartphone users at 53% and 45%, respectively.

Security concerns were also rated highly as a concern among both smartphone users — 33% — and non-smartphone users — 30%. Also, 29% of non-smartphone users stated cost as a reason for not accessing these accounts, while only 10% of smartphone users said the same thing.

Finally, 26% of smartphone users also indicated that slow connection speeds hindered their mobile financial service usage. Demonstrating the overall strong awareness of these services, only 6% of smartphone users and 5% of non-smartphone users stated not knowing about these services as a reason why they did not access these accounts.

3-2, 3-3, 3-7, 3-9, 3-12, 3-13, 3-14, 3-15, 4-2, 4-4, 4-5, 4-8, 4-11, 4-14, 4-15

Good luck and Happy Angry Birding!!

But Sprint has been very visible at the CTIA trade show in Orlando. CEO Dan Hesse, who doubles as chairman of the CTIA trade organized, [...]]]> Sprint Nextel’s stock price was creeping back up midday Tuesday after getting hammered in the aftermath of Sunday’s AT&T-T-Mobile announcement, a deal that hangs over the entire mobile industry.

But Sprint has been very visible at the CTIA trade show in Orlando. CEO Dan Hesse, who doubles as chairman of the CTIA trade organized, delivered the morning keynote address, and Sprint used the CTIA forum to announce two new 4G devices.

These include an Android (running the Gingerbread version) smartphone model the HTC EVO 3D that promises to deliver glasses-free 3-D. Consumers will also be able to capture 3-D on the device up to the 720p high definition standard. EVO 3D is due out this summer (no pricing yet).

Three-dimensional content on the device can be shared on a 3-D TV. And Sprint says 3-D on the phone could appeal to real estate agents giving virtual home tours or outdoorsy types who might rely on 3-D maps of mountainous terrains and such. You’ll also be able to fetch 3-D movies on demand through a preloaded Blockbuster app. There’s also a front-facing camera for video chat.

The 3-D stills and videos on the screen that I was able to briefly watch was impressive. The phone must be in landscape mode to watch 3-D stills or videos.

Among other features, you’ll be able to wirelessly share videos, music and pictures you shoot with other electronics in your home provided they comply with an industry standard called DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance). The phone will also be among those that integrate Google Voice (and let you keep your Sprint number), as was previously announced.

Sprint also unveiled the HTC EVO View 4G, a 7-inch touchscreen tablet that is also slated for a summer release. It brings with it a digital pen for drawing, or note taking through apps like Evernote. Pricing hasn’t been set.

Via

There was some information about this small business Internet service provider here. I showed it to our operations supervisor the other day because it seemed like something looking into. We have had some issues with our Internet, our phones and just a good chunk of our electronic [...]]]> Thanks for the guest post by Jonathan Curtis

There was some information about this small business Internet service provider here. I showed it to our operations supervisor the other day because it seemed like something looking into. We have had some issues with our Internet, our phones and just a good chunk of our electronic files. That is a big issue in this digital age, especially when you are trying to provide the best services possible to your customers. It is an even bigger issue when you are trying to grow your company. If you cannot manage what you have, then growth is a big question mark. So I showed him some information on these providers I had heard about. They all had better services than what we were currently using. It definitely has made us innovative to try to get our work done with what we have, but it seems like it is time to have what we need to do our job right. I mean how nice would it be to get on the Internet and make a phone callat the same time as twelve other people without losing connectivity or not having the files be sent back and forth fast enough?