Mobile Commerce News

Cyphermint Chairman to Lead Mobile Payments Development Task Force

2007-12-17T13:52:00.000-08:00

Cyphermint, a provider of secure electronic payment solutions, announced that Cyphermint's Chairman of the Board, Dr. Ivan Kuznetsov, has been named as Project Leader for Mobile Payments of the Information Communication Union (ICU) of Russia.

Dr. Kuznetsov, who is currently Chairman at Bank Tavrichesky in Russia, was also appointed Project Leader for the Mobile Payments Project (NFC and M-payments) at the GSM Association meeting in London on November 23, where he also made a PayCash Mobile presentation.

The GSM Association (GSMA) is the global trade association for mobile operators, representing 700 GSM mobile phone operators across 215 countries of the world. The meeting on November 23rd focused on two major areas: mCommerce and the implementation of NFC technology and the Mobile Money Transfer Program and how it relates to global remittances.

Cyphermint's President Joe Barboza said, "This appointment for Dr. Kuznetsov is a great opportunity and brings more recognition for Cyphermint and PayCash Mobile; it reinforces the global scope for our technology. PayCash technology possesses such high security standards,
is multi-lingual, multi-currency, and is positioned to be a worldwide leader in mobile commerce for the unbanked consumer."

PayCash enables consumers to conduct bill payment, mobile banking, person-to-person transfers and retail payments around the world.

The GSM Association (GSMA) is the global trade association representing 700 GSM mobile phone operators across 215 countries of the world. In addition, more than 180 manufacturers and suppliers support the Association's initiatives as key partners.

All-in-one cards, NFC will drive contactless in 2008

2007-12-14T15:01:00.000-08:00

If last year’s dramatic growth of contactless smart cards and applications is any indication of what is to come, then we are in for another exciting year. The proliferation of the technology and associated standards extend the contactless reach well beyond physical and logical access to high growth markets such as transit, NFC, e-Payments and even the campus card. This upward trend has no ceiling as organizations across the spectrum expand use of their “credential program” to applications that directly impact operations, thereby lowering costs while increasing efficiencies.

LEGIC estimates that 50% of the more than 50,000 LEGIC installations world-wide are running more then one application on the same card right from the beginning and within two years another 20% add additional applications. With this in mind, the worldwide trend to ‘all-in-one-cards’ will continue due to the large savings involved as compared to the managing and administering of just one credential.

The current multi-application trend will begin to go one step further and combine two technologies into one solution called dual-interface, taking all existing and new contactless applications and putting them on a new credential (or token, tag, etc). LEGIC refers to this concept as card-in-card, a solution that helps organizations reduce costs by getting rid of the need to potentially carry two credentials or a hybrid credential.

In addition, the global rollout of ubiquitous mobile devices that communicate to other NFC (near field communication) devices will give the American Express commercial “don’t leave home without it” an expanded meaning. The current hype about NFC devices will begin to bear fruit right here in the United States. Currently in Europe, LEGIC is participating in several pilots in partnership with leading smart card and mobile phone suppliers and major network operators such as Swisscom to develop access control and vending solutions for mobile devices.

Financial markets, mobile operators and merchants will continue to build consumer demand for even greater convenience and flexibility, which will, in turn offer more opportunities for developers to deliver creative solutions. Hold your phone near a poster or magazine advertisement to download music, a map, and photos; download coupons from a magazine to your phone and then hold the phone to the reader at the store to receive your discounts; scroll through which payment option you wish to apply and not only pay for the transaction but gain loyalty points too —all with just one mobile device.

Finally, you don’t have to be a Fortune 100 company or the Federal Government to take advantage of contactless technology. Price points are dropping and applications abound. Both small and large organizations have become pioneering trendsetters in using these technologies to ensure a secure, and at the same time, cost effective means of giving their employees, students, or guests an ID on one single credential. Throw in an NFC device and you complete the activity cycle at the office or campus.

This is just the tip of the contactless iceberg, which is why the future for contactless smart card technology looks very bright indeed.

Alltel Wireless and Digby Offer Mobile Shopping via BlackBerry smartphones

2007-12-11T08:19:00.000-08:00

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. & AUSTIN, Texas --(Business Wire)-- Whether waiting in line at the movies, riding in a taxicab, or on the go, Alltel customers can now shop from their BlackBerry smartphones.

Alltel Wireless America's largest network, providing coverage across the nation, today introduced Digby Powered by Alltel, a free mobile shopping service for new Research In Motion BlackBerry(R) smartphone users. As a result, Alltel customers will have easy access to products from an expanding list of retailers that includes Barnes & Noble, Best Buy, Godiva Chocolatier, and FTD.com. Customers can easily access Digby by going to alltel.com/smartphone from their wireless device and selecting Digby.

"Mobile shopping is an excellent complement to Alltel's portfolio of Wireless Internet solutions that provides our customers more flexibility while on the go," said David Maddox, director of advanced data solutions for Alltel Wireless. "We believe Digby's high quality and easy-to-use solution offers Alltel customers the best mobile shopping experience available today."

"Our new relationship with Alltel Wireless to bring Digby Powered by Alltel to market is a key milestone in our company's development," said David Sikora, CEO of Digby. "We're looking forward to working closely with Alltel as they provide the most powerful mobile shopping experience to their customers."

Paying for parking in Europe will be easier with special meters and contactless payments

2007-12-07T12:45:00.000-08:00

The parking industry is at the forefront of wave and pay contactless credit card technology.
The worlds first parking meter incorporating a payment system using contactless credit cards has recently made its debut at the Cartes exhibition in Paris.

Parking machine manufacturer Metric and card payment specialist CreditCall demonstrated the technology on the Visa Europe stand at the show only the third time wave and pay has been seen by the public.

The fully-operational contactless credit card parking meter made its debut at Retail Solutions earlier in the year and was later demonstrated to the British Parking Association.

Now its been viewed with major interest at Cartes 2007 from where it is expected to be certified and in production within three to six months.

The parking meter is a special version of Metrics new Aura machine that accepts payment using the newly issued contactless Visa payWave cards.

Visa payWave cards were introduced especially for low value transactions where the user needs to pay fast. The two partners in this innovative payment solution for pay and display say parking is a perfect application for the new cards.

Metric and CreditCall say the new cards bring exceptional convenience for motorists who simply want to park and pay as quickly and easily as possible.

Wave and pay offers users a clearly superior alternative to all existing payment methods, including coin, mobile phone and even traditional chip and pin credit cards. At the same time, wave and pay offers the lowest cost of implementation due to the simplicity of the card reader.

Said Metrics sales and marketing director Bill Laurie: Metric is committed to remaining as a market leader with the introduction of all new technology. And we are delighted to be involved in a partnership with CreditCall.

Everyone is convinced that the wave and pay contactless credit card will be a very popular option with pay and display machine users in the future.

He added: Metric is recognised for its innovation within the parking industry and over the last 40 years can claim many firsts, from the worlds first electronic pay and display meter to networked machines and vehicle ID on ticket.

Peter Alcock, CreditCalls marketing manager, said CreditCall was a specialist credit and debit card payments services provider serving the unattended terminal, e-commerce and retail PoS industries.

Operating a global processing network with processing nodes and bank connections in the US and Europe, the CreditCall network is one of the most resilient outside the banking industry, he added.

Visa Europe plans to commence public trials of contactless cards in the London where they will be able to be used for transactions up to 10.

Alcatel-Lucent provides Softbank Mobile with a scalable mobile backhaul solution

2007-12-07T12:37:00.000-08:00

Alcatel-Lucent today announced it has been selected by Japan’s Softbank Mobile to supply a mobile backhaul solution to help the operator meet rapidly increasing subscriber demand for broadband services on Softbank’s third generation (3G) mobile network. Alcatel-Lucent’s mobile backhaul solution– which leverages IP/MPLS technology - is part of Alcatel-Lucent’s Mobile Evolution Transport Architecture (META), the industry’s most comprehensive vision for the evolution of mobile networks to all-IP.

With 80 percent of Japanese mobile users having already migrated to 3G, mobile service providers need to offer reliable and innovative services in order to remain competitive. By deploying Alcatel-Lucent’s mobile backhaul solution to aggregation layer, Softbank can more flexibly and effectively address the rapidly increasing subscriber and traffic.

“Providing innovative 3G services based on a reliable and scalable network is critical to our success in the highly competitive Japanese market,” said Junichi Miyakawa, CTO of Softbank Mobile. “Alcatel-Lucent’s solution which we adopted can provide not only a customized mobile transport infrastructure that is perfectly suited to our needs, but also the capability and scalability for our evolution to all-IP.”

“Alcatel-Lucent‘s experience in major IP network and service transformation projects is unmatched in the industry,” said Frederic Rose, President of Alcatel-Lucent’s Asia Pacific activities. “Our backhaul solution will evolve Softbank Mobile’s network efficiently and profitably, and at the pace of customer demand.”

Alcatel-Lucent’s solution includes the 7670 Routing Switch Platform, a highly scalable and configurable multiservice (switch/router) platform - capable of supporting next generation multimedia-rich services - and the 5620 Network Management (NM) platform. Alcatel-Lucent also will provide professional services such as project management, maintenance, integration and testing. This agreement highlights Alcatel-Lucent’s role as a leading supplier of backhaul solutions for 3G mobile networks, and strengthens its position in the Japanese market.

While being able to address the pressing demands for high-capacity 3G mobile backhaul with industry-leading ATM/IMA performance and reliability, the Alcatel-Lucent 7670 RSP allows the extension of its rich IP feature set to support non-stop IPv4/IPv6 and VPNs (6PE, and 6VPE), as well as MPLS pseudowires. As a result, Softbank Japan is able to future-proof its network to meet the continued growth of IP-based applications and services, and allow for the smooth evolution to all-IP.

More than 180 service providers in more than 70 countries around the world have selected the Alcatel-Lucent IP portfolio as key elements of their IP transformation, including massive, multi-year projects at AT&T, BT and Telstra. Alcatel-Lucent’s META is the industry’s most comprehensive vision for the evolution of mobile networks from TDM to all-IP. META leverages Alcatel-Lucent’s unmatched expertise in end–to-end IP network transformation, and leadership in CDMA, 2G/3G mobile, microwave, IP/MPLS, DSL/GPON, SONET/SDH, network management, and services.

Google Announces launch of iPhone Application

2007-12-06T10:34:00.000-08:00

Today, Google announced the release of a new iPhone application that integrates its multiple services into a single interface, making it easy for iPhone users to find, use and switch between Google search, Gmail, Calendar, Reader, and more. To use the application, iPhone users simply point their web browser to http://www.google.com.

To accomplish this, Google is taking advantage of browser technologies (like AJAX) that made Gmail and Google Maps possible on the desktop. In supporting these advances in web technology, the iPhone’s Safari browser not only delivers an excellent mobile Internet experience; it enabled our product and engineering teams to create an optimal Google experience on a mobile device.

Google’s overall goal is to provide users with access to information, wherever they are. This commitment is device-independent, and we are working to develop new mobile technologies that are faster, easier to use, and available on more devices. A recent example is My Location (http://google.com/gmm/mylocation.html), a Google Maps for mobile feature that shows users their location directly on the map with or without GPS. To see the full range of mobile products and services available from Google, visit http://mobile.google.com.

What Mobile Operators Really Think

2007-12-04T06:59:00.000-08:00

Aite Group has released a new report titled "Mobile Banking, Payments and Commerce: What Mobile Operators Really Think" that "gauges mobile operators' current perceptions about mobile transactions. It aims to define what mobile operators really think about the evolution of mobile phones to provide banking and payment functionalities. Perhaps more significantly, it examines how mobile operators expect to generate revenues from these functionalities."

The report, titled "Mobile Banking, Payments and Commerce: What Mobile Operators Really Think," is based on an October 2007 survey of 12 international mobile operators, and provides information on their perceptions of mobile banking, mobile payments and mobile commerce.
It reveals that operators' greatest motivation for deploying such services is enabling new revenue streams, and that they see revenue generation stemming largely from fees per end-user transaction in all three areas of mobile transaction services.

However, the reality is that the larger industry does not widely support such fees for operators. In fact, mobile banking services are overwhelmingly offered free of charge by institutions at this time, and financial institutions and card networks are reluctant to share transaction fees from mobile payment services with mobile operators.

Only in the area of mobile commerce might operators find an easy inroad to revenue generation through transaction fees. It is the one area in which financial institutions have historically played less of a role; as mobile operators have already established business lines around the sale of digital content (i.e., ringtones), the leap to full-blown mobile commerce will be far less dramatic.

"Although this runs counter to the ideas of the financial industry, mobile operators are confident that they will be able to generate revenues from fees per end-user transaction for all forms of mobile transaction services," says Nick Holland, senior analyst with Aite Group and author of this report. "However, banks and card networks have expressed that they are unlikely to allow this to happen. Operators are much more likely to generate revenues from end-user subscription fees for mobile data access, as well as from mobile advertising and from handset upgrades to support contactless technology."

Taiwan's First Contactless Payment Card to be Used on Kaoshiung MRT

2007-12-02T07:11:00.000-08:00

TaiwanMoney Card, Taiwan's first contactless payment card for use while shopping and paying for transportation in southern Taiwan's seven counties and cities will also be valid for use on Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit, which is scheduled to begin operations Dec. 1, an official of Kaohsiung City said Thursday.

The card was jointly launched by the Kaohsiung City government, Cathay United Bank, and E. Sun Commercial Bank, in cooperation with MasterCard Taiwan, for use in Kaohsiung City, Kaohsiung County, Tainan City, Tainan County, Chiayi City, Chiayi County, and Pingtung County, the official said.

Differing from Taipei City's EasyCard, which can only be used to pay for transportation, the TaiwanMoney Card can also be used for shopping, the official said.

TaiwanMoney Card holders can currently use the card to take buses on a total of 385 lines in the above counties and cities, on ferries in Kaohsiung City, as well as to shop at contracting stores including certain convenience stores, grocery stores, coffee shops, diners, and gas stations, the official said.

The official added that two varieties of the card are available, one of which may be used as a credit card.

Holders of the ordinary TaiwanMoney card will have to pay a NT$10 handling charge each time funds are transferred to the card, while those using TaiwanMoney credit cards will enjoy automatic overdraft protection up to NT$700 and will pay no handling charges, the official said.

The Cathay United Bank has issued 60,000 ordinary cards, and over 80,000 of the credit card variety, while the E. Sun Bank has issued 50,000 ordinary cards and 20,000 of the credit card type, the official said.

Planet Payment Selects PerSay for Voice Authentication

2007-11-30T01:26:00.000-08:00

Planet Payment , a leading international multi-currency payment and data processor, announced today its selection of PerSay, the leading provider of advanced voice biometric solutions, to deliver voice authentication technology to be integrated with Planet Payment's product suite for the banking, financial services and retail sectors.

As the use of mobile phones has grown exponentially and reached universal adoption on a worldwide basis, Planet Payment has seen a corresponding increase in the need for payment and processing solutions that allow businesses to reach customers more effectively via this medium. To address this need, Planet Payment created its BuyVoice line of mobile payment solutions, which provides merchants with easy-to-use powerful tools to market, reach and sell to customers.

Customers using Shop BuyVoice(TM) can conduct quick, simple and secure shopping just by speaking, using any mobile telephone. In the next product generation, consumers will have the option to register for the service online or over the phone, and only need to provide an identifier and voiceprint, along with payment and delivery information, to conduct secure, convenient mobile shopping. PerSay's voice biometric technologies will provide customer verification by taking advantage of the fact that each person's voice is a unique and unobtrusive identifier, like a fingerprint.

"Planet Payment believes that the mobile commerce segment is becoming more important to banks and merchants worldwide, and we are committed to providing the market with leading-edge voice commerce and processing solutions which business can use to sell more product and simplify the shopping experience. PerSay's voice authentication technology adds an additional layer of security and privacy to our product line, further extending Planet Payment's lead in highly secure payment and data processing with the ease of voice and the simplicity of any phone," says Phillip Beck, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Planet Payment.

"Planet Payment joins a growing list of market leaders, such as Bell (Canada), British Telecom and Bank Leumi, that are combining enhanced security with a more convenient customer experience through the application of advanced voice biometric technologies. We are honored to have been selected as Planet Payment's voice authentication partner," says Almog Aley-Raz, PerSay CEO.

In December 2006, Planet Payment launched Payment BuyVoice, which allows merchants to accept credit card payments via any mobile or landline phone, in conjunction with a transportation payment specialist in the U.K. In July 2007, Planet released a beta of its new and revolutionary Shop BuyVoice product in the United States. BuyVoice with voice authentication will be introduced as a product enhancement to the current beta product.

Verizon Walks Slowly Towards an Open Mobile World

2007-11-28T05:28:00.000-08:00

Verizon Wireless has announced that it will "provide customers the option to use, on its nationwide wireless network, wireless devices, software and applications not offered by the company. Verizon Wireless plans to have this new choice available to customers throughout the country by the end of 2008."

With this move by Verizon, the implications for mobile banking and mobile payments will be fun to ponder. What's not mentioned in Verizon's press release is what the cost might be to qualify an open device on its network.

What's an example of a non-traditional mobile device? Amazon's Kindle comes to mind - I've got one and Amazon's Whispernet (running over Sprint's wireless network) is a key ingredient in making the Kindle such a delightful experience for readers. That, and, of course, the integrated 1-Click payment from my Amazon Account.

More from Verizon's announcement:

In early 2008, the company will publish the technical standards the development community will need to design products to interface with the Verizon Wireless network. Any device that meets the minimum technical standard will be activated on the network. Devices will be tested and approved in a $20 million state-of-the-art testing lab which received an additional investment this year to gear up for the anticipated new demand. Any application the customer chooses will be allowed on these devices. This new option goes beyond just a change in the design, delivery, purchase, and provisioning of wireless devices and applications.

"This is a transformation point in the 20-year history of mass market wireless devices -- one which we believe will set the table for the next level of innovation and growth," said Lowell McAdam, Verizon Wireless president and chief executive officer. "Verizon Wireless is not changing our successful retail model, but rather adding an additional retail option for customers looking for a different wireless experience."

Verizon Wireless will continue to provide a full-service offering, from retail stores where customers can shop, to 24/7 customer service and technical support, to an easy-to-use handset interface and optimized software applications. While most Verizon Wireless customers prefer the convenience of full service, the company is listening through today's announcement to a small but growing number of customers who want another choice without full service.

Following publication of technical standards, Verizon Wireless will host a conference to explain the standards and get input from the development community on how to achieve the company's goals for network performance while making it easy for them to deliver devices.

Verizon Wireless has a track record of listening to customers and transforming entrenched industry practices based on those customer needs. The company parted with the industry last year when it introduced pro-rated early termination fees, and in 2004 when it refused to participate in a wireless directory when customers said they didn't want one. Verizon Wireless also broke with "wireless tradition" when it supported local number portability because customers wanted the freedom to take their number if they switched service providers. Such responsiveness to customers has earned Verizon Wireless the strongest brand reputation in the industry.

RBS plans to pioneer mobile phone debit payments

2007-11-26T09:30:00.000-08:00

The Royal Bank of Scotland announces plans to become the first British Bank to pioneer Mobile Phone debit payments in the UK using Maestro PayPass.

Following a successful 'Tap and Go'™ Mobile Phone payment, the Royal Bank of Scotland announces plans to trial the service internally at its Headquarters in Edinburgh until the end of 2007 before starting public trials next year.

'Tap and Go' Mobile Phone payments could revolutionise the way people make their day-to-day debit transactions, by providing a fast and convenient way to pay for items up to the value of £10. The participants in the RBS trial will simply have to place their mobile phone on a contactless payment terminal and their transaction will be processed in seconds. This means that people will, for the first time be able to buy everyday goods, such as a coffee or a book without touching their wallet.

Paul Geddes, Chief Executive, Consumer Banking at The Royal Bank of Scotland, says: "RBS was the first bank in Europe to carry out a public Contactless Card debit payment and we have now repeated this feat with a successful Mobile Phone Contactless debit payment at our Headquarters. We decided to trial this payment innovation because we think people will really welcome the speed and convenience of reaching for their mobile phone to make a payment, instead of worrying about whether they have enough loose change in their pocket or locating their wallet. This is yet another example of RBS delivering new and innovative ways for customers to make payments - it's about speed, safety and convenience.

"Mobile phones are playing an increasingly important role in our day to day lives. According to official figures, 80% of UK adults own at least one mobile. As we constantly look for ways to improve customer convenience, we therefore believe that mobile phones will be the next step in the payments evolution.

"What's more, we think that retailers will welcome Mobile Phone Contactless payments because quicker transaction times equals faster moving queues and ultimately happier customers."
Mobile Phone payments use short range, wireless technology called Near Field Communication (NFC) to carry out secure 'Contactless' payments. When the mobile phone is placed in very close proximity to the Contactless terminal, it transmits data from the customer's mobile phone to the retailer's card reader.

Replacing Wallets with Mobile Phones

2007-11-23T10:21:00.000-08:00

In an article titled "One More Thing Cellphones Could Do: Replace Wallets", Dan Fost writes for USA Today about using mobile phones for payments. "It's relatively easy to make cellphones very secure devices," said Allen Weinberg, managing partner at Glenbrook Partners, a Menlo Park, Calif., financial services and electronic payments consulting firm.

He said the encryption is "as good as or better than what you do with an ATM or at-home banking. No one is going to pick up your phone and start moving money around the world. It's just not going to happen."

Mobile Payment Infrastructure in Mexico

2007-11-23T10:16:00.000-08:00

CPNI has announced an agreement with PROSA (Promocion y Operacion, S.A. de C.V.), the largest provider of electronic transactions in Latin America, in which PROSA will provide financial institutions in Mexico with the centralized payments processing backbone for CPNI's Phone Authorized Transfer (PAT) mobile payment solutions.

PAT global, bank-branded mobile solutions enable bank customers to make payments and transfers or access banking services using a mobile phone. PAT offerings feature global mobile payment message routing, which empowers banks to offer person to person and person to merchant remote payments and transfers as well as mobile banking services. Banks are able to leverage their existing accounts, security processes and settlement channels.

Customers download a bank-branded Java application to their mobile phone, providing access to all PAT services available from their bank. Other interfaces are also available. To make transfers or purchases, customers simply provide the recipient's or merchant's telephone number, select a bank account or credit card and enter the amount of the transaction.

PATsend(TM) (e.g., remittances, parents to students) allows people to send money to other people using their phone. Prompting the consumer through the transfer process, PATsend enables intra and interbank account transfers, and transfers to unregistered users, anywhere in the world.

PATbuy(TM) (e.g., prepaid mobile phone top-up, movies) allows bank customers to make purchases at participating merchants around the world using their phone. PATbuy offers customers access to a limitless number of merchants from a single application on their phone. Registered merchants can immediately accept payments from all PATbuy consumers.

PATbank(TM) (e.g., pay bills, view statements) delivers a range of dynamic mobile banking services to the customer through their phone. Customers can choose from a selection of available banking activities for instant account administration.

With almost 40 years of experience in the payment market, PROSA operates one of the most important payment switches in the world, processing more than 1.3 billion transactions annually, the largest volume of electronic transactions in Latin America for a single provider.

PROSA facilitates the majority of transactions made at point of sale terminals throughout Mexico and Latin America, including American Express, Visa and MasterCard, as well as the ATM's of HSBC, Santander, Scotiabank, Banorte, Banjercito, Banca Afirme, Interacciones, Ixe, Invex, Banregio, and other financial institutions in Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Latin America.

"Today's announcement of our partnership with PROSA and the addition of a node to the PAT global mobile payments network is an important step forward," comments Patrick Bird, President and CEO of CPNI Inc. "PROSA has the power to help deliver PAT solutions to the Mexican banking community and make convenient mobile transfers and payments a reality for the people of Mexico. USD $25 billion in remittances flowed into Mexico last year, which does not include undocumented money transfers. PAT gives banks an innovative way to reclaim ground lost in this market and compete against alternative money transfer organizations, while also providing mobile banking services and a new way of making merchant purchases."

As a bank-branded service, PAT solutions engender trust from consumers since they are using a product offered by their own bank. The PAT family of solutions makes it easy for banks to accelerate the number of mobile transactions performed by their customers by giving these customers access to a limitless number of people and merchants to whom they can send money.

Promocion y Operacion, S.A. de C.V. (PROSA), is the largest provider of electronic transactions in Latin America. Its services include routing, authorization, settlement, and clearinghouse of electronic transactions, as well as the operation of point-of-sale terminals, automatic teller machines, internet applications, and other related services. For more information, visit http://www.prosa.com.mx.

CPNI Inc. (CPNI), an IBM Business Partner, is a private software development company headquartered in Toronto, Canada. For banks seeking a mobile payment solution, CPNI provides Phone Authorized Transfer (PAT), a global, bank-branded solution for remote payments. PAT allows people to make payments, purchases or transfers using a mobile phone, while banks leverage existing accounts, security policies and settlement channels. PAT software solutions empower banks to compete against 3rd party payment providers by enabling payments and transfers to be made with convenience, speed, security and low cost using a mobile phone. For more information, visit the company's web site at http://www.cpni-inc.com.

NFC reaches the hard to reach

2007-11-20T10:11:00.000-08:00

Using an ATM card and checking an account balance online may not be that unordinary to people online reading this, but for those people who live in small rural town and earn small amounts of money rarely ever access a bank account. But six months ago, the Andhra Pradesh government decided to experiment with their technology-outreach program and is starting to change all of this using Near Field Communications.

This past summer, officials sent in cell phones and a bunch of smart cards to rural "camps." The government hopes to touch 35 lakh people across the state under the project. Everyone entitled to the state pension will be the first recipient of the technology's benefits. "It's the first time that such a high-end technology is being used at the grassroots," claim its creators—Mumbai-based A Little World Pvt Ltd.

Microsoft Windows Mobile Delivers for Bank of America Customers

2007-11-20T09:57:00.000-08:00

Windows Mobile-based phones are providing consumers with a feature-rich user interface when they access the Bank of America’s Mobile Banking service, making it the most popular smartphone operating system used by its customers, Microsoft Corp. reported today at the BAI Retail Delivery Conference & Expo.

Bank of America — the leader in online banking — rolled out its Mobile Banking service to consumers nationwide in May. The service enables more than 20 million online banking customers to bank directly from their cell phone or smartphone with built-in security features.
“Windows Mobile empowers customers to be productive away from their desk or home, whether they are sending e-mail, managing their calendars or surfing the Web,” said Greg Haislip, industry solutions director for the U.S. Financial Services Group at Microsoft. “With Bank of America Mobile Banking, customers have one more option to connect to important information while on the go.”

Customers looking for the nearest Bank of America ATM or banking center through the new service are served with Microsoft MapPoint technology. Designed for everyday business use, MapPoint makes it easy to visualize business information on maps. Customers can seamlessly use MapPoint from their phone to find the most convenient Bank of America location around town.

“Mobile Banking provides consumers with the convenience, security and control of banking anywhere, anytime,” said Lance Drummond, e-Commerce/ATM executive for Bank of America. “Consumers can check their balances while shopping, pay bills during their commute and find the nearest ATM for cash — even when they are on the go.”

Blue Bamboo Shows Off Pocket POS Mobile Merchant Solution at Cartes 2007

2007-11-19T00:34:00.000-08:00

Blue Bamboo announced that its Pocket POS Mobile Merchant Solution is now available targeting payment applications segments such as mobile sales and service, transportation and delivery and PC-based virtual terminal payment processing. The Blue Bamboo Pocket POS Mobile Merchant Solution is a complete hardware and software based system designed to enable merchants by using a cellular phone, Blackberry, PDA, or laptop to quickly accept payment cards anytime and anywhere business takes place.

The solution includes a secure wireless payment application to process transactions; card data is captured and receipts printed on Blue Bamboo devices including the P25-M Portable Receipt Printer and H50 Bluetooth Terminal. The solution can be shipped with a compliant handset for a complete out of box mobile payment experience.

The secure Pocket POS Mobile Merchant Solution is compliant to PABP (Payment Application Best Practices) guidelines set by PCI. A PCI-PED certified Blue Bamboo H50 Terminal accepts pin-based IC and swipe cards while the compact P25-M printer conveniently supports MSR swipe payments. Both configurations support cash and keyed in payments.Built on the standard open platforms of today s portable devices, the Pocket POS Mobile Merchant Solution can be easily integrated into existing applications and payment servers. APIs are available and development services can also be arranged with Blue Bamboo.

Jason Jones, CEO of Blue Bamboo, said on benefits the Pocket POS Mobile Merchant Solution brings to market: "This solution provides a simple, secure and affordable approach to mobile commerce for contemporary merchants. As enterprises continue to deploy mobile technology to their workforce, the Pocket POS Mobile Merchant Solution provides an excellent opportunity to maximize return-on-investment.

"Blue Bamboo demonstrated the Pocket POS Mobile Merchant Solution on a variety of Motorola and RIM Blackberry devices at Cartes 2007, November 13-15.

Datacard announces contactless smart card coupler for desktop instant issuance

2007-11-16T09:59:00.000-08:00

Datacard Group's recently-announced smart card coupler, designed for its 150i desktop card personalization system, will enable banks, credit unions and other financial institutions to give consumers immediate access to contactless payment cards. This ability to instantly issue smart cards from the desktop fills an important role in the company’s solutions portfolio, the company says.

Datacard Group has strengthened its commitment to the instant issuance market by announcing a contactless smart card coupler option for the Datacard® 150i desktop card personalization system.

The new option enables banks, credit unions and other financial institutions to give consumers immediate access to contactless payment cards — one of the fastest growing trends in the industry. Datacard Group expects the contactless smart card coupler to benefit the many solution providers serving this market segment, including Dynamic Card Solutions (DCS), a leading instant issuance solution provider and developer of DCS CardWizard® software, a Datacard Group preferred software solution.

“We are seeing high demand for payment cards that incorporate contactless smart card technology,” said Ron Zanotti, vice president of sales and marketing for DCS. “Contactless payment cards offer unprecedented convenience for consumers, who can use them to pay for virtually any purchase — especially small amounts — quickly and easily. Contactless cards are also great for banks because they increase card usage, improve customer retention levels and create product differentiation. And retailers like them because they speed transactions and minimize cash handling.”

“With the new contactless smart card coupler for the 150i system, we will be able to offer an attractive instant issuance solution and expand our market share as contactless cards continue to increase in popularity,” Zanotti said.

For Datacard Group, the ability to instantly issue contactless smart cards from the desktop fills an important role in the company’s solutions portfolio.

“Financial institutions can issue these cards instantly, which gives consumers immediate purchasing power, expedites activation and eliminates the delays of sending cards through the mail,” Connell Smith, vice president of desktop solutions for Datacard Group. “Later, when these cards expire, they can be reissued with our proven high-volume systems. We look forward to supporting the instant issuance market for years to come.”

Datacard Group offers the world’s best-selling secure ID and card personalization solutions. The company’s portfolio includes systems for high-volume card issuance, card delivery, secure ID issuance and passport production, plus extensive service and supply offerings. Datacard Group serves customers in more than 120 countries (www.datacard.com).

A Bank in Every Pocket?

2007-11-16T09:15:00.000-08:00

The Economist looks at mobile banking in an opinion piece in its November 15, 2007 issue - mostly discussing the regulatory aspects of banking on a mobile phone. "The regulatory approach being taken in the Philippines provides a good model for other countries. Rather than trying to work out the best rules in advance, which could hamper innovation, the regulator is working closely with the banks and operators behind the country's two m-banking schemes."

SRM Technologies Announces SRM Mobile Wallet

2007-11-13T20:13:00.000-08:00

SRM Technologies has announced SRM Mobile Wallet, calling it "an advanced mobile payments software application." SRM says its Mobile Wallet enables users of cell phones or other mobile devices to pay for goods and services using the contactless payment systems already in place at over 45,000 U.S. merchants.

Utilizing NFC (Near Field Communication) enabled mobile devices, SRM Mobile Wallet electronically stores credit, debit and/or gift card credentials on the phone, and securely transmits the card details to the NFC contactless reader. SRM Mobile Wallet brings new functionality to SRM Mobile(TM), the company's mobile banking platform, and helps to secure SRM Technologies' leadership position in delivering innovative solutions to banks.

"There is a growing debate among banks in the United States concerning the business case for mobile banking," said Scott West, Vice President of Sales for SRM Technologies' Banking Solutions division. "While we believe mobile banking adoption will increase significantly over the next few years, we also see an opportunity to help banks justify the expense of mobile banking. SRM Mobile Wallet gives banks the opportunity to generate new revenues and fees through the issuing of mobile credit."

In addition to the opportunity for banks to generate new revenues and fees, SRM Mobile Wallet also creates the potential for banks to align themselves more closely with local and national retailers. Using the SRM Mobile Wallet software, retailers can coordinate their gift card program with the bank, providing the opportunity for enhanced gift card services in conjunction with the bank's credit or debit card customer base.

SRM Technologies expects the mobile payments market to grow dramatically over the next several years. "According to reports by industry analysts, the market opportunity for mobile payments could reach over $10 billion in the next few years," stated Suresh V. Chari, CEO of SRM Technologies. "With the increase of NFC-enabled phones expected to grow to over 450,000 handsets during the same time period, we decided to invest in the development of SRM Mobile Wallet. SRM Technologies has been an innovator in mobile development for several years. This effort continues to demonstrate our leadership position in developing mobile applications."

CheckFree Announces Expanded Mobile Banking, Mobile Payments Strategy

2007-11-13T20:03:00.000-08:00

CheckFree has announced an expanded OpenChannel strategy for mobile banking and mobile payments that it says "is designed to support multiple technologies for delivering online financial services via mobile devices, including microbrowser-based wireless application protocol (WAP), text messaging (known as SMS for short messaging service), and device-resident applications. Financial institutions can choose from a full range of deployment options, including hosted, software-based, hybrid and flexible component models, to meet their specific needs."

"CheckFree's OpenChannel strategy for mobile banking and payments recognizes that financial institutions need the flexibility to choose and implement multiple technologies for the delivery of these services," said Alex Hart, executive vice president and general manager, CheckFree Electronic Banking Services Division. "We are responding to our customers' needs for multiple technologies, infrastructure solutions and professional services to help them implement optimal mobile banking and payment solutions."

Celent LLC, a leading financial services information technology and strategy research firm, estimates that 3 percent of all households using online banking in 2007 will also use some form of mobile banking. In 2010, this figure is estimated to rise to 30 percent, the equivalent of 17 million households.

"To determine the best technology for mobile banking, Celent regards banks' needs for ubiquity as the biggest driver of mobile banking technology attractiveness. If banks are to build mobile banking channels and derive associated benefits, all bank customers must have access to this channel, not just those using certain mobile carriers or owning particular handsets," said Red Gillen, senior analyst of emerging technologies at Celent. "Given this, it is highly likely that any successful mobile banking implementation will adopt a hybrid model consisting of a minimum of two technologies-SMS plus mobile browser, or SMS plus client application."

Since November 2006, CheckFree's primary focus in the mobile channel has been on the device-resident downloadable application, offered through a strategic partnership with Firethorn Holdings, LLC (www.firethornmobile.com). America First Credit Union, Arvest Bank, BancorpSouth, SunTrust Bank, Synovus, and Wachovia Corp. are among the CheckFree customers that have announced their selection of the device-resident approach.

CheckFree has already extended support for multiple mobile technologies by working with one of the nation's top five financial institutions as part of a WAP browser-based implementation. CheckFree provides the payment processing infrastructure that enables the bank's customers to view electronic bills and schedule and cancel payments using mobile devices.

Mobile Operators to Launch NFC-Based Mobile Payment Services

2007-11-13T20:00:00.000-08:00

The GSM Association has announced that, over the next several months, 12 mobile operators will run trials of contactless mobile payment services in Australia, France, Ireland, Korea, Malaysia, Norway, The Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Turkey and the U.S. as a precursor to commercial launches.

The trials form part of the GSMA's Pay-Buy-Mobile initiative, which is designed to provide a single global approach to enabling contactless payments using a mobile phone. Consumers will be able to use their handsets to quickly, easily and securely pay for goods and services in shops, restaurants and train stations.

The Pay-Buy-Mobile initiative supports the use of the Single Wire Protocol, which was adopted by ETSI* as a standard in October 2007, to link the Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC) contained within the mobile handset with the phone's embedded Near Field Communications (NFC) chip. The NFC chip can communicate with existing contactless payment systems to deliver a wide range of secure, interoperable and transparent services, such as credit and debit payments. There are 35 mobile operators with 1.3 billion customers participating in the initiative.

In a global first, executives from Korean operator KTF have paid for goods by passing their NFC-equipped handsets by contactless readers in retail outlets in Korea, Taiwan, and the U.S. in a trial involving real transactions facilitated by MasterCard. For this trial, MasterCard's Paypass application and Shinhan Bank's credit card application were downloaded to a KTF UICC embedded in the mobile handsets, which were provided by LG Electronics and Samsung Electronics. The retail outlets at the respective locations were equipped with readers that support the NFC interface and accept MasterCard's Paypass applications, enabling real transactions in three different countries.

"Just nine months after this programme was launched in Barcelona, the first pioneering mobile operators are preparing for the rollout of commercial services that have the potential to become the foundation of a global, interoperable mobile payment service," said Rob Conway, CEO of the GSMA, the global trade association for mobile operators. "Mobile payment services, which will enable transactions to be completed faster in shops, restaurants and train stations, will also make it easier for merchants to offer their customers precisely-targeted discounts and other promotional offers."

Both consumers and merchants see significant benefits from using the mobile phone as a payment form factor at point of sale, according to research carried out by Serrula on behalf of the GSMA. Two-thirds of the 2,574 consumers in 17 countries surveyed said that they expect to begin using their mobile phone to pay at point of sale within two years of the service becoming available. Moreover, 50% of the 240 merchants from 10 countries surveyed see promotional opportunities in using the mobile phone as a payment device.

"We are proud to be the first operator in the world to trial this global payment scheme", said Young-Chu Cho, CEO of KTF, a leading HSPA operator in Korea, "We have been working diligently to deliver more than mobile values to our customers and NFC M-Payment is definitely a step forward in realizing our vision."

"By adopting the global standard, experiences and technology, we aim to trigger our domestic NFC related industries to align with global standards and develop more advanced services and products to energize the telecommunications category. We are glad to join this global payment scheme trial to demonstrate cross-border interoperability," said Mr. Jan Nilsson, President of Far EasTone Telecommunications.

"Australia is experiencing a wireless revolution with the highest growth rates in the world. Telstra is working with one of the country's leading banks and a global credit card provider to make it easier for customers to pay for goods and services with their mobile phones with a trial to begin early next year," said Sol Trujillo, CEO of Telstra.

"In Europe, Orange is a pioneer in promoting high-scale trials in association with a large number of banks, major financial institutions and key MNOs to launch interoperable mobile contactless payment services," said Mung-Ki Woo of Orange, VP Payment and Contactless. "Orange has announced trials in the UK and a commercial launch in France in 2008, that will include not only payment but also transport ticketing, football stadium ticketing, and interactive billboards with key service partners."

"AT&T was the first carrier in North America to participate in a large-scale NFC contactless payments trial in 2005," said Mark Collins, VP of Consumer Data Services at AT&T Mobility. "Even from our early efforts in this space, we've seen the value of engaging a broad ecosystem to drive standards and promote the adoption of mobile payment services. We are excited to build on our early work in this space and to play a role in establishing global standards for mobile payments"

"Maxis' participation in GSMA's global Pay-Buy-Mobile trials is a significant milestone in our overall Mobile Payment strategy, which we launched as Maxis M-Money in early 2007," said Dr Nikolai Dobberstein, Head of Products and New Businesses of Maxis Communications, Malaysia's largest mobile telecommunications operator. "Maxis, currently the only Malaysian mobile operator participating in the Pay-Buy-Mobile trial, has already rolled out a number of mobile payment services, including Mobile International Remittances. Maxis is also conducting trials for a hybrid multi-payment mobile service for credit card and prepaid travel payments, incorporating NFC technology."

"SFR, a leading HSPA MNO in France, has already conducted several trials in the field of mobile NFC services, focused both on transportation ticketing and m-payment. SFR is also currently testing multi-applicative NFC services in Strasbourg, combining a credit card payment application and a transportation application that customers are able to use in the trams and buses," said Mireille Poggi, Mobile Payment & M-Commerce Marketing Manager of SFR. "As we believe strongly that interoperability will be key regarding mobile NFC acceptance by customers and service providers, SFR is in the meantime an active member of Pegasus, a global French initiative, including both major MNOs and banks, aiming at defining an interoperable setup in payment."

"The popularity of MasterCard PayPass, coupled with the widespread use of wireless technology has created many payment opportunities far beyond that of the simple swipe of a card," said Shuan Ghaidan, Head of Product Sales and Delivery, Asia/Pacific MasterCard Worldwide. "This new NFC-based KTF mobile payment phone shows innovative use of the latest technology to increase convenience by giving consumers the ability to use their mobile phones to make contactless payments anywhere around the world where PayPass is accepted. MasterCard is pleased to contribute to the establishment of global standards that will help push the mobile payment market to the critical mass level."

The GSMA is about to publish two white papers on http://www.gsmworld.com , one of which sets out several business models that can support a mobile payment service and one of which sets out version two of the GSMA's technical guidelines for NFC.
The Pay-Buy-Mobile initiative builds on the infrastructure of the major credit card companies, which have developed specifications to ensure global interoperability between contactless chip cards and point of sale terminals, regardless of manufacturer, the financial institution and location of transaction.

The GSMA is working closely with leading financial intermediaries and banks to promote globally interoperable transaction solutions. Both MasterCard and VISA are supporting the trials with their PayPass and Visa payWave features respectively, that enable NFC-equipped phones to effect payment transactions at secure contactless point of sale terminals.

INSIDE Contactless is exclusive suppliers of "Pay by Mobile" NFC components

2007-11-11T11:08:00.000-08:00

At the end of November 2007, six major banks, four mobile phone operators, Visa Europe and MasterCard Worldwide will be launching the “Pay by Mobile” operation, an experimental contactless payment system. 1000 test customers will have mobile phones fitted with INSIDE Contactless’s MicroRead NFC component.

INSIDE Contactless, the leading NFC technology and contactless chip designers, have announced that they will be participating in the “pay by mobile” operation. Inside will fit their NFC MicroRead chip to the 1000 pilot-scheme customers’ mobile phones. This operation, which has been tested on 200 traders in Caen and Strasbourg and involves a large number of manufacturers, is intended to simplify local payments by giving customers a quick, safe and simple method of paying everyday bills.

The 1000 “Pay by Mobile” users will have INSIDE Contactless’s microread® payment platform incorporated in their mobile phone SIM cards.

microread® is an innovative new-generation RF using NFC (Near Field Communication) short-distance transmission technology. When fitted to mobile phones, PDAs or PCs, this chip enables them to operate as wireless RF receivers and smart cards, or RF tags.

microread® is totally compatible with NFC specifications and includes all NFC options. The microread® chip has a “battery off” mode that makes it possible to complete a transaction even if the power supply is cut off, because the component is self-powering.

The INSIDE Contactless chip is currently one of the most reliable and secure payment-by-mobile devices. It is the select solution, indispensable for major players in the market. Remy de Tonnac, INSIDE Contactless’s Chairman and Managing Director, says: “With this experiment, Inside will not only prove the technical capacities of our contactless payment platform–which are already well known–but also the new convenience of use and the new experience such services can provide for users”

With this experiment, the leading players in the market have taken a bold new road. The “Pay by Mobile” project is not intended to be just a technical or operational experiment, but rather the first step towards the marketing of this new service.

Google and IBM team up for advanced server project

2007-11-11T11:04:00.000-08:00

Google and IBM have joined forces to promote new software developments to address the challenges of large internet-scale applications in the future. Along with several American universities, the companies say the aim of the project is to help students and researchers better understand emerging technologies in the large-scale distributed computing arena.

The companies are committing significant amounts of hardware and software to the project which will help tackle challenging applications needed for search, social networking and mobile commerce to run quickly and cheaply.

Tasks need to be farmed out to run across multiple servers simultaneously. They have dedicated a large cluster of several hundred computers including Google machines and IBM BladeCenter and System x servers. The cluster is expected to grow to more than 1600 processors.

The servers will run open source software including Linux, XEN systems virtualisation and Apache's Hadoop project, an open source version of Google's MapReduce and Google File System.

Alibaba.com Aims to Lead E-Commerce

2007-11-09T12:55:00.000-08:00

The founder of China e-commerce giant Alibaba.com Ltd. said Monday on the eve of the company's initial public offering that he hopes to turn it into a world leader of business-to-business commerce online.

Alibaba.com hit its goal of raising $1.5 billion by selling 858.9 million shares, or a 17 percent stake, at its IPO in Hong Kong, an individual familiar with the matter told Dow Jones Newswires Saturday on condition of anonymity.

The IPO price translates to a multiple of 55 times the company's forecast 2008 earnings.
"I want to turn the company into a leading e-commerce platform for China, Asia and even the world," Jack Ma, founder of parent company Alibaba Group, said at a forum in Taipei. Ma disputed that China's business climate makes it difficult for e-commerce to grow.

"People think that there is no mutual trust in China and the Chinese government imposes too many restrictions," Ma said. "Yet only when you work harder than others under rough conditions do you have a chance to succeed." Ma attributed Alibaba Group's success to good teamwork and clear focus. "I have seen many who are more clever and hardworking than (my team and me)," Ma said. But "we have a loyal team which has stayed on the same course and not wavered."

Mobile Commerce Leader mPoria Inc. Tops 100 New Retail Customers in Six-Month Period

2007-11-07T07:19:00.000-08:00

Mobile commerce leader mPoria, Inc. today announced the addition of 107 new customers in the six months ending October 31, 2007. mPoria's customer base grew with the addition of new merchants of all sizes across all retail categories. These companies are using mPoria's GoMobile(TM) m-commerce platform to market and sell physical merchandise to more than 236M wireless consumers nationwide.

According to mPoria's CEO Dan Wright, "mPoria's new customer wins clearly demonstrate significant retailer adoption of mobile commerce and merchant confidence in the value and superiority of our technology."

From large merchants like GameStop and Buy.com to specialty retailers that include 800Florals, DesignersImports, and Hickory Farms, hundreds of U.S. retailers have deployed m-commerce sites to take advantage of the growing $500M mobile commerce North American market. Juniper Research reports in 2006 alone, U.S. consumers spent and estimated $480M on physical merchandise using their mobile device and the U.K-based research firm expects this figure to exceed $1.9B by 2010.

Wright further commented, "2007 has been a watershed year for m-commerce in the U.S. -- we see every indication that the market will continue accelerating and expect to add an even greater number of new customers to our roster over the coming months."

"Market-leading retailers understand this (m-commerce) is a segment that can't be ignored," said Jeff Wisot, vice president of marketing, Buy.com. "Those wishing to be a part of this critical market opportunity need to concentrate on offering consumers full m-commerce capabilities. We researched available options and found mPoria to offer the most comprehensive solution with the lowest barrier to entry.

" mPoria's GoMobile! service is a turnkey m-commerce solution that enables retailers to easily and cost-effectively build, customize and monitor a complete m-commerce site. Site set-up is simple and requires no in-house development expertise. Once a retailer's site is live on the GoMobile! service merchants are able to market, advertise and offer consumers the ability to shop on the mobile web with their cellphone. mPoria's service supports both smart- and feature phones across the majority of all handsets offered by major U.S. carriers including Verizon, AT&T and Sprint.