[img_assist|nid=12151|title=AIME is seeking to promote consumer confidence in the mobile gaming industry |desc=|link=popup|align=left|width=94|height=150]The Association for Interactive Media & Entertainment (AIME) has announced the planned launch of a Mobile Gaming Forum to promote an environment of consumer confidence and trust in the mobile gaming industry.

AIME notes that with the advent of smartphones, and the increase in consumer confidence with the mobile channel, mobile transactions are becoming increasingly commonplace. Premium rate micropayments provide gaming companies with an important customer acquisition tool, enabling new customers to sign-up and spend money using their mobile devices on impulse.

AIME is focused on delivering an environment of self-regulation and best practice within the premium rate industry, which protects consumers, while fostering a positive climate of opportunity for businesses that serve this sector. It feels that the time is right to support this area of the industry via the Mobile Gaming Forum.

Members of the forum will be drawn from the key players in the mobile gaming value chain, including gaming companies, mobile network operators, platform providers and aggregators, media and rights owners, mobile betting and gaming technology providers, and consumer-education groups.

Mark Gibson, business development manager at mobile solutions firm mkodo, will chair the Forum. He says: “Mobile Gaming has become, over the last couple of years, a substantial channel within digital gaming and interactive services. The industry expects the rapid upward trend to continue challenging the primacy of online activity within two to three years. Juniper Research expects annual wagers on mobile gaming to reach £30bn per annum in the next four years. Having a forum through which mobile gaming companies can liaise with mobile carriers and can lobby on mobile gaming-related issues and initiatives will prove to be of great benefit for the industry’s growth.”