Vibes Media today announced a new mobile marketing platform tailored for retailers, dubbed “Retail CRM Alerts.”  The SMS-based platform allows retailers to “build databases of mobile customers, leverage text message campaigns to increase mobile and Web traffic, and drive m-commerce.”

While numerous mobile marketing platforms exist, Vibes hopes Retail CRM Alerts will give retailers direct and simplified access to leverage the m-commerce market — which is estimated to be worth $2.5B today.  ”The mobile explosion and m-commerce growth have gone hand-in-hand, and mobile marketing campaigns offer a uniquely effective path to mobile purchases,” said Drew Green, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Vibes.  ”The Vibes Retail CRM Alerts platform provides brands with an effective way to create powerful connections with consumers that increase engagement, drive in-store visits, and push activation to m-commerce.”

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MarketResearch.com has published an in-depth report and analysis on the mobile payments and technology sector entitled “Mobile Payment – Advanced Technologies (NFC), Strategies And Future Of Remote & Proximity Payment In The U.S.”

In it, the research firm details the technology associated with mobile payments — primarily NFC — which it says is in the nascent stage with an adoption rate of only 1.7%.  With the help of NFC technology, banks will be able to tap micro transactions made by cash, representing around 20% of the total transactions in the U.S., according to the research.  This will also help banks to capture the growing GEN Y population as well as the huge underbanked and unbanked population.

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The American Red Cross was on hand today to deliver the keynote for the DMA’s Nonprofit Mobile Day event in New York, where SMS and mobile-giving took center stage.

The Red Cross was just bolstering its mobile efforts when the earthquake in Haiti struck, and the nonprofit provided a lifeline of support during relief using SMS to solicit donations.  “Last year around this time the American Red Cross put together a mobile team focused on disaster services and marketing, so when the earthquake in Haiti struck, it gave us an early edge,” said Jana McAndrew, manager of online fundraising at the American Red Cross.

The Red Cross said it received donations via SMS from 3 million unique donors, of which 20,000 even opted-in to receive on-going email communication.  In total, the Red Cross helped raise $32M in relief aid to victims of the Haitian earthquake, of which 95% were first-time donors.  This is an incredible statistic, and one that speaks volumes of the ease and reach of SMS donations.

Numerous mobile content providers settled several class-action lawsuits today that stemmed from alleged unauthorized charges on users’ wireless bills.

Flycell, Glomobi, Mobilefunster, Thumbplay, WebAMG Holdings, Glispa and Motricity were all named in the lawsuits, and collectively put the cases to rest by agreeing to settlements in the amount of $9M and attorney’s fees of up to $1.85M.  In a press release on the subject, all companies were clear in saying that “each of the Defendants has denied any wrongful conduct, and the settlement is in no way a judgment or ruling by the Court that the Defendants did anything wrong.”

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In the world of LBS rewards and promotions, coupons and so-called “on-the-spot” discounts are deemed the number one advantage for mobile consumers.  New data out from eMarketer suggests consumers are hungry for much more, however, especially when they’re standing at their local grocery store.

A March 2010 Deloitte survey found that the top two ways food shoppers use mobile phones involve deal seeking, but the remaining three activities are purely information-driven.  Close to a quarter of food shoppers use their phones in-store to learn more about a product, whether on a brand’s website or through online reviews, signaling a thirst for mobile information in real-time from LBS apps.

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While the mobile commerce segment burns red hot, consumer protection groups warn of the potential security risks associated with using your mobile device as a payment method.

Consumer’s Union, the nonprofit testing and information organization which publishes Consumer Reports, called on regulators Tuesday to implement protective standards on mobile payments, and to educate consumers of the liabilities in using mobile payments as opposed to highly regulated traditional credit and debit cards.

Federal law currently protects credit or debit card holders from many charges associated with lost, stolen or misused cards, for example, but without industry-wide rules for mobile commerce providers, consumers could risk losing money through fraud, merchant disputes or processing mistakes, the group said.

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Mobile payments and mobile commerce in general is a hot topic these days, with nearly every major player making a move in some form or fashion.  Consumers want a seamless experience, and while we’re not there yet, the reality is right around the corner.

Diving deep into the world of mobile payments, Portio Research has published a comprehensive 110-page research report covering all facets of the technology as well as current and future trends.  Mobile commerce is one of the fastest growing segments of the mobile industry these days, with Portio pegging the worldwide face value of purchases made using mobile phones at $68.7 billion in 2009, reaching $633.4 billion in 2014.

Meanwhile, over the same period, the number of mobile users who pay for goods and services using their mobile phones will increase a staggering 600% from 81.3 million to 490 million, according to the report.  With these kinds of numbers, it’s easy to see why nearly every operator and stakeholder in the mobile ecosystem is scrambling for a mobile commerce strategy.

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