Over 2 billion mobile phone or tablet users will make some form of mobile commerce transaction by the end of 2017, up from 1.6 billion this year, a report has found.

In fact, in many developed markets, mobile devices will account for over half of online transactions within five years, a report by Juniper Research notes.

Some companies are reaping the benefits of this: A tenfold increase in mobile revenue and a more than doubling of monthly active mobile users helped Alibaba post a sharp increase in both revenue and earnings in Q3, its first quarterly results as a public company.

The study adds that while growth in the number of mobile digital content purchasers in developing markets is relatively low, the value of customers is increasing markedly as they shift from ringtone purchase to richer media content typically monetised through in-app purchase.

The report encourages brands and retailers to use the popularity of social media to their advantage and “integrate their offerings with players such as Facebook and FourSquare. Integration offers reach, allied to the potential to target specific user demographics.” Already a number of messaging firms have launched, or are considering, payment services.

The study also found that concerns around transaction security remain the primary inhibitor of the adoption of e-commerce.