Airlines in Malaysia step up mobile play and safer payments

The phenomenal growth of smartphones and mobile commerce have spurred Malaysia Airlines (MAS), AirAsia and Firefly to launch new apps and payment options.

MAS teams with Paypal for faster. safer mobile payment

Malaysia Airlines has teamed up with PayPal to become the first airline in Southeast Asia to provide faster and safer mobile payments on any Internet-connected mobile device.

With this collaboration MAS’ MHmobile app and flymas.mobi mobile site now accept PayPal for all its domestic flights and from Malaysia to its international destinations, booked from anywhere in the world.

Currently the mobile app transactions are only in Malaysian ringgit. However, the company will roll out seven currencies in the near future to meet customer demands, including the US dollar, euro and yen, said MAS’ senior vice president, marketing and promotions, Al-Ishsal Ishak.

PayPal’s mobile checkout experience for MAS’ flights from other areas will also be rolled out in phases in the near future.

The carrier aims to achieve 20%-30 growth in digital revenue this year with the introduction of the PayPal payment option.

“This year we expect to maintain the momentum or surpass the number recorded last year, driven by the introduction of the PayPal payment method which is convenient and secure,” said Al-Ishsal.

He added that the national carrier is revamping its website to include new features, multiple country languages and multiple currencies.

“We are launching our new website’s commercial platform in the next 45-60 days and, within the third or fourth quarter this year, we will have PayPal application on the desktop.”

• Read below an extract from “PayPal Mobile Shopping Insights 2011” on the online shopping trend among Malaysians.

AirAsia makes bookings easy with Google Chrome app

AiraAsia, the region’s leading low cost carrier, has provided Google Chrome users with another option to book their flights with the newly launched AirAsia for Chrome app.

The app allows the passengers to book their flights directly through their Google Chrome web browser in four easy steps – choose the destination and dates of travel, select add-ons such as baggage allocation and meals, fill in personal details, and proceeds to make payment via credit card.

The app also features a “Discover” button where passengers can search for available flight options based on the their budget. Powered by Singapore-based company, Flocations, the button asks travellers to key in their travel dates and destination. Using the price slider they can see on the map all regional destinations they can fly to, which are within their selected budget. By simply clicking on their chosen destination, they can proceed with their flight booking.

AirAsia group head of commercial, Kathleen Tan, said with the Chrome app, the airline is providing another platform to make it easier for guests to book flights.

“About 20% of our guests use Google Chrome to visit our website and we see this as a great way to cater to this crowd. Moving forward, we are planning to add more features to the app so guests can log in with their AirAsia account, make payments with the BIG prepaid Visa loyalty cards among others.”

The AirAsia for Chrome app has received over 10,000 downloads since it was launched in mid-May.

Firefly rolls out revamped mobile booking facility

Firefly, Malaysia Airlines’ subsidiary, unveiled its revamped mobile booking facility – Firefly Mobile – in mid-June that allows the airline’s guests to make flight bookings, buy additional checked-baggage allowance and pay for sports equipment fee, all from their mobile devices.

Additionally, passengers can also retrieve their booking details anytime, anywhere if they do not have their flight itinerary with them and change the flight time or date up to 48 hours before scheduled time of departure.

Firefly Mobile was disabled last year with the airline promising it would be revamped to offer passengers a better booking experience.

The airline’s head of marketing & communications, Angelina C Fernandez, said the revamp took longer that it had anticipated “because finding the right partner was critical to a successful user-friendly product, and as rule we don’t compromise on quality.”

The free app is available from the Google Play Store for Android mobile devices and iTunes for the iPhone and iPad.

• Online shopping trends of Malaysians

According to the recent PayPal Mobile Shopping Insights 2011 study, the mobile commerce market in Malaysia grew from RM101 million (US$32 million ) in 2010 to RM467 million in 2011, representing more than 370% jump in just one year. The mobile commerce market is forecasted to grow more than seven times to reach RM3.43 billion in 2015.

There were 642,770 Malaysians who made a purchase through a mobile device in 2011. and the median spend increased to RM500 per mobile shopper in 2011. Booking of airline tickets was in the top five mobile shopping categories for Malaysians worth RM32 million in total mobile transactions in 2011. More importantly, airline ticket booking is a top three category for future purchases on smartphones.