The cable industry long ago widened its ambitions beyond video, addicting millions of customers to cable modems and more recently adding voice over internet protocol telephony to its menu. Insiders call this video-voice-data combo the "triple play" strategy. So with a trifecta of moneymaking schemes on its plate, the cable guys must be pretty satisfied, right? Uh, no. "We're all still waiting for that aha moment in which we have a portable device that came from the cable company," said Dale Fox, vice president of digital phone at Time Warner Cable. That's right. The cable industry wants you to chuck your cable -- at least when you're outside the house. The addition of a fourth wireless component to the cable package is now affectionately known as the "quadruple play." At the annual meeting of CTAM, the cable industry's top sales and marketing folks gathered in Philly this week to figure out new ways to get at your wallet. And while the conference focused on many topics, including better customer service, VOIP, video on demand and improving cable-modem speeds, the big buzz was about mobility. After all, customers now want to take their entertainment and communications with them everywhere they go. The last thing cable operators want is to be left out of that party.
Alternative Payment Methods (APMs) – comprising digital wallets, instant payments, and QR payment systems – are experiencing explosive growth that's reshaping the global financial services marketplace. According to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research , the combined global transaction value for APMs is projected to reach $142 trillion by 2030. What's particularly fascinating is the underlying driver behind this trend: a growing desire for financial sovereignty, with nations developing domestic payment ecosystems rather than remaining dependent on international financial networks. Payment Ecosystem Market Development In 2024, approximately 45 percent of the global population used digital wallets – a remarkable adoption rate for a technology that barely existed a decade ago. China leads this transition, with 95 percent of its population using WeChat's payment functionality. WeChat exemplifies the "super app" phenomenon, where payment capabilities are in...