The phrase mobile commerce was originally coined in 1997 to mean "the delivery of electronic commerce capabilities directly into the consumer’s hand, anywhere, via wireless technology."^[1] Many choose to think of Mobile Commerce as meaning "a retail outlet in your customer’s pocket."

Mobile commerce is worth US$230 billion, with Asia representing almost half of the market, and has been forecast to reach US$700 billion in 2017.^[2] According to BI Intelligence^[3] in January 2013, 29% of mobile users have now made a purchase with their phones. Walmart estimated^[4] that 40% of all visits to their internet shopping site in December 2012 was from a mobile device. Bank of America predicts^[5] $67.1 billion in purchases will be made from mobile devices by European and U.S. shoppers in 2015. Mobile retailers in UK alone are expected to increase revenues up to 31% in FY 2013–14.