Attention to Detail
Apple Pay and Apple Music have showed mixed results. Both of them are available on iOS devices, but they have different purposes. The former is based on financial technology (fintech), and the latter is a streaming music service. Analysts in the industry believe that even though they are still in the early stages, the mood towards these services has changed in accordance with the ability to provide specific benefits to consumers right away.
According to market research firm InfoScout on Aug. 9, the number of iPhone 6 users with an experience using Apple Play in the U.S. decreased from 15 percent in March to 13 percent in June. Only 23 percent of respondents said that they had ever used Apple Pay in June. Considering that the figure reached 39.3 percent in March, the number of people who use the mobile payment service has been shrinking.
The biggest reason lies in the fact that affiliated stores are required to install NFC-enabled terminals. Moreover, Apple Pay's struggle can also be ascribed to its failure to offer a greater user experience than traditional payment methods like cash or credit cards. As a result, Google's Android Pay, which, like Apple Pay, supports NFC-based mobile payments and has forged partnerships with large credit card companies and banks such as Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Chase Bank, City Bank, and Bank of America, is also likely to struggle.
In contrast, Apple Music saw its total subscribers surpass 11 million only one month after the launch of the service. Apple Music has secured 11 million subscribers since June 30, and 2 million people are using a family-oriented payment system, according to data published by Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president of Internet software and services.
These kinds of results were anticipated to some degree. Apple Music is available at US$9.99 per month, but only US$14.99 (around 16,000 won) is needed each month for a family of six. The fact that the streaming music service is free until Oct. and family membership is more affordable than single membership appears to have contributed to the popularity of Apple Music. If 1 percent of iPhone users continually subscribe to Apple Music, the streaming music service is expected to account for 10 percent of the global digital album market in 2016.
The mixed results of Apple Pay and Apple Music are likely to be a proper reference model to services that can succeed in the market. Apple did not take special measures to expand the market for Apple Pay. The U.S. tech company focused on the connection of its mobile payment service to the financial sector. However, Apple Pay imposes a big burden in the early stages, since NFC-enabled terminals are needed and transaction fees occur. Apple Music, on the other hand, is provided free of charge during a certain period of time. Furthermore, iTunes is of great help to Apple Music. It is uncertain how much profit Apple Music will generate after the service is officially available. However, it is undeniable that Apple Music was successful in building up the mood in its early stages.
Experts are saying that to soft-land Apple Pay in the market, it should be rapidly integrated into each country's financial system, together with the distribution of the mobile payment service around the world. Its outlook itself is not bad, though.
According to market research firm GfK, smart watches can be utilized for various purposes, but users have great expectations for the compatibility of Apple Pay with payment systems. In a survey of smart watches conducted in China, Germany, Korea, the U.K., and the U.S., more than half of the the respondents said that they intended to provide their health information gathered using smart watches to doctors or hospitals. Among them, 63 percent of Chinese people said that they are willing to use smart watches as a transportation card, followed by 54 percent of Koreans and 42 percent of Americans. In particular, those who were questioned in China showed a great interest in the fintech area using NFC.