GSMA Mobile 360 Middle East took place this week in Dubai, and speakers were largely in agreement on some key issues.
The most consensus, according to Mobile World Live, appears to revolve around prioritizing the user experience while ensuring digital security. This view is becoming increasingly popular with the rise of electronic and mobile commerce, with major opportunities on the horizon in the Middle East and North Africa. MasterCard executive Sanjiv Purushotham asserted that these markets are growing at a 20 percent annual rate and will be valued at $100 billion in five years, but he also decried the current impediments to digital transactions, which are relatively inconvenient compared to in-person purchases. A representative from mobile operator Etisalat spoke to similar concerns, arguing that users currently have to juggle “too many digital identities.”
Of course, there are solutions, and the Natural Security Alliance’s Ugo Dallemagne and Morpho’s Jessica Westerouen van Meeteren both highlighted those related to biometric technology in their talks at the conference. Biometric authentication has already played a crucial role in getting Apple Pay off the ground via Touch ID fingerprint scanning, and other biometric deployments are helping to illustrate a range of possibilities. In her talk, for example, Westerouen van Meeteren highlighted India’s Aadhaar national biometric ID program as an example of how a single comprehensive biometric identification system can be used in financial services and the mobile realm. These kinds of solutions are likely to prove increasingly important as organizations seek to take advantage of the market opportunities that are emerging in ways that emphasize both security and convenience for the user.
Source: Mobile World Live
Follow Us