According to a new Juniper Research report, half a billion people worldwide will use their mobiles to buy travel tickets by 2015 – five times the number generated in 2010. At the moment Japan leads the mobile ticketing market with other countries mainly using SMS or bar code systems.
The report says that whilst SMS ticketing has been in operation for several years in large cities in Scandinavia and Central and Eastern Europe such as Stockholm and Prague, Juniper believes that recent momentum in Near Field Communications (NFC) will only add to market growth. As metro authorities begin the transition to open contactless payment systems, NFC ticket usage is forecast to grow significantly beginning in 2013, says the report.
Airport expresses are already actively working with airlines to offer integrated air-rail tickets for seamless travel. The Malaysian rail link between Kuala Lumpur International Airport and the city centre has formed a partnership with Malaysia Airlines selling 2D barcode based rail tickets online. Russian S7 Airlines recently introduced a new service for its passengers. Heathrow Express was the first UK train company to launch a mobile ticketing app. www.juniperresearch.com
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