E-mail, weather and search web sites are the most popular among consumers logging online through their mobile phones, according to a new study by San Francisco-based Telephia. The company said that 4.8 percent of the 191 million U.S. wireless users accessed web email sites in June. Weather related sites (3.9 percent) and search sites (2.9 percent) weren't far behind, followed by sites featuring sports and news and politics. The most popular sites among mobile users included The Weather Channel, Yahoo Mail, MSN Hotmail, Google Search and ESPN. "For people on the go, accessing the Internet through their mobile devices is an extension of their Internet use on their PC," said Kanishka Agarwal, Telephia's vice president of new products. "It is not surprising top mobile Internet categories mirror Internet content categories accessed via a computer."
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...