2011 Envisions a Bright Era for Travel and Mobile eBooking

Half of the global transactions and two-thirds of purchases will be made through mobile eBooking by the year 2015! This insight was provided on the 4th of February, 2011 by Google executives. For those who are not already on the mobile platform, that should give you some food for thought.
Mobile commerce is going through the roof with the rapid growth in usage of mobile Internet. Google also says that mobile eBookings are on the upward climb, especially in the travel industry. In the days gone by, word-of-mouth reigned supreme for people to decide on their travel destinations; now the primary medium by which destinations are chosen is mobile Internet. Some of the reasons behind this are the decline in prices of mobile phones, convenience of usage, and affordable mobile internet rates. As a result mobile commerce app development services have also grown affordable and floods of online retailers, including travel companies are reaping the rich benefits from this.
Some stats to take note of:
• 69% of businesses visit an average of 22 sites after which travel destinations are booked.
• In 2010, mobile bookings went up 69% from 2009, when only about 9% of people used the medium.
• 15% of all reservations were covered by mobile bookings in 2010.
• 70% of hotel bookings made through eBookers mobile site were for same-day check-in, while only 15% were through the desktop version of the same site.
• Over 67% of general travelers around the world own a smartphone with mobile internet and applications that facilitate travel-related information, maps, eBookings, etc.
• The market for mobile payments is expected to quadruple by 2014, reaching $630 billion in value. (Juniper Research)
Scores of travel companies are offering mobile browser-based and mobile app based services through which eBooking of tickets can be done. More than 70% of people in the US trust the safety offered by transactions over their smartphones and 40% of them are not at all hesitant for mobile eBooking of tickets. And it’s not just eBookings, mobile apps and browser based services enhance a travelers experience by giving him access to maps, real-time travel news, offers and discounts, holiday brochures, reviews and ratings.
M-commerce is growing to be a significant part of mobile value-added services with mobile ticketing, mobile coupons, and mobile payments contributing immensely to value-added services revenues. Travel portals that have launched their own mobile apps have seen a steady growth in the percentage of mobile bookings. The general view is that people use their mobile phones for last minute business trips or weekend trips, and mostly so on weekends. Festival seasons also witness a surge in mobile bookings. Indian portals like Yatra.com have gone further by integrating their mobile application into Sony Ericsson phones.
For all hoteliers, airlines, and everyone else with the travel industry, the point to be noted is that all your current and potential customers lie within the billions of mobile phone users. Why lag behind on revenue that can be generated through eBooking
. Harness the power of going mobile.