Matt

Mobile payments will reach $171 billion globally in 2012, a 62 percent increase over last year's total of $105.9 billion, according to research firm Gartner Inc.

That increase corresponds with a 32 percent rise in mobile payment users expected this year. The number of users is expected to hit 212 million users, up from 160.5 million in 2011.

With the closing of Google's $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility this week, talk of the possibilities for Android in the enterprise has spiked.

While Android has taken the consumer market by storm -- the OS runs 59 percent of smartphones shipped in the first quarter of 2012 -- IT managers remain wary that maintaining security and control of consumer Android devices devices used by workers may be difficult if not impossible, according to various surveys.

Android and iPhone devices together made up 82 percent of all smartphones shipped to retailers in the first quarter of 2012, IDC said Thursday.

The combined worldwide shipments of Android- and Apple iOS-based devices dwarfs those of other smartphone operating systems, including Research in Motion's BlackBerry, a traditional frontrunner now on a "downward trajectory," IDC says in a statement.

A Cisco-commissioned survey of 600 businesses found that 95% permit the use of employee-owned smartphones and tablets in the workplace.

The survey also found that 76% of IT managers consider the consumerization-of-IT a positive for their companies because employees can be more productive and feel more satisfied with their jobs.

Adoption of Android tablets and smartphones in large businesses has been "severely limited" because of the complexities of managing the various Android models and versions, market research firm Gartner said in an evaluation of 20 mobile device management (MDM) software vendors released Friday.

A survey that Gartner conducted in April showed 58 percent of enterprises have or will make iOS, used in iPhones and iPads, their primary mobile platform in the next year, compared with 20 percent for BlackBerry and 9 percent for Android.

Google is reportedly moving to more direct sales of its Android smartphones and tablets in an apparent move to wrest control away from wireless carriers that install their own services on Android gear or block Google apps like Google Wallet.

The so-called Nexus devices, using a familiar Google name, will run on the next version of the Android mobile operating system, dubbed Jelly Bean, with a portfolio of devices expected to go on sale by Thanksgiving.

If Intel-based Windows 8 tablets launch in November, as one informed source expects, Microsoft would face a narrow window to play a role in the important holiday sales period.

"Windows-based tablet makers must hit the holiday selling season or face a real crisis," said Jack Gold, an analyst at J. Gold Associates. "The tablet market on Windows won't really take off until Windows 8. Microsoft needs to get in the game in the short term."

Summer 2012 promises to be the season of tablet experimentation on a grander scale than ever.

AT&T has recently been in talks to buy Leap Wireless, a carrier operating in 35 states with 6 million customers, according to three unnamed sources cited in a report from Reuters.

According to Reuters, Leap hired bankers to advise it on a possible deal, but it wasn't clear whether the talks are ongoing.

American Express will allow its credit cards to use the Isis Mobile Wallet once the technology is deployed in Salt Lake City and Austin this summer, Isis announced Thursday.

American Express joins Chase, Capital One and Barclaycard in announcing Isis support earlier this year. Amex will allows its consumer credit card and other cards to be part of Isis Mobile Wallet.

Research in Motion's BlackBerry 7 smartphones have been approved for use by Department of Defense operations, the company announced.

The DOD approval will enable Army and other U.S. military personnel to utilize several features in the BlackBerry 7, including voice-activated universal search, Near Field Communication, augmented reality and social networking feeds, RIM said on Wednesday.