NEWSIsis, the mobile commerce startup developed by AT&T Mobility, T-Mobile USA and Verizon Wireless, signed JPMorgan Chase & Co., Capital One N.A. and Barclays Bank Delaware to deals that allow the banks' debit, credit and prepaid cards to reside on the Isis mobile wallet.
Consumers will be able to load the eligible cards onto the wallet by summer 2012, Isis said. Once the cards are loaded, consumers will be able to use smart phones to shop, redeem coupons and earn loyalty points at participating brick-and-mortar merchants. The program will roll out first in Salt Lake City and Austin, Texas.
Visa Inc., MasterCard Worldwide, Discover Financial Services and American Express Co. are already attached to the Isis venture, providing the banks freedom of choice among card brands to offer customers.
"Isis is setting itself apart by patiently building an ecosystem of user, network and merchant partners, offering an open platform that leaves partners in control of how they will communicate with their customers, and leaving the partners in control of sensitive payment and marketing data transiting over the platform," said Gwenn Bézard, a Research Director at Aite Group LLC.
SmartMetric Inc., a manufacturer of biometric credit and identification cards, introduced a new credit card that uses fingerprints, instead of PINs or passwords, to verify users and activate the card's transaction capability.
A miniature fingerprint reader built into the card activates it as a payment device. The card is only activated if the fingerprint of the card user matches that of the card owner. SmartMetric said its new technology is the "safest method for securing both offline and online purchases."
PayPal Inc., the payment subsidiary of eBay Inc., reported the rollout of its in-store payment system to all The Home Depot U.S.A. Inc. locations nationwide, nearly 2,000 in total. The new PayPal payment option is expected to be installed in all Home Depot POS systems by the middle of March 2012.
In other news, PayPal is adding a new operations site in Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland, with the support of the Irish government through the industrial development agency IDA Ireland. The new operations center, representing the third eBay operation in Ireland, will reportedly add 1,000 new jobs to the Irish economy.
On Feb. 28, 2012, Visa made several announcements, all geared toward mobile commerce.
Visa and U.K. mobile telecommunications company Vodafone Group PLC inked a deal to develop a Vodafone-branded mobile wallet for Vodafone's 398-million user base across 30 countries and five continents.
The service will be launched in Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Turkey, and the U.K. It is apparently the largest agreement to date between a global payment network and a mobile operator.
Secondly, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. and Visa revealed the official mobile payment application of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Samsung mobile phones embedded with Visa's payWave technology will allow consumers to make contactless, near field communication (NFC)-enabled proximity payments at venues throughout the games.
Also, Visa teamed with Oberthur Technologies Inc. to provide financial institutions and mobile network operators with a way to securely provision - or download -payment account information to NFC-based smart phones.
As a trusted service manager, Oberthur develops software and platforms to manage the provisioning and activation of accounts on cards and mobile devices that function with NFC.
Finally, Intel Corp. and Visa allied to develop mobile commerce solutions for consumers in developed and developing countries. As part of the agreement, Visa certified Intel's Smartphone Reference Device for use with payWave.
ANNOUNCEMENTSMobile payment provider Charge Anywhere LLC launched its Mobile Payment Application for Android with Spanish language capability at the CARTES in North America Expo & Conference held in Las Vegas March 5 to 7, 2012.
Cynergy Data LLC added a merchant pricing module to its VIMAS management tool. Cynergy said the module enables ISOs to set prices in hundreds of ways.
ISOs can use the tool to create customized Pass-Through, Pass-Through Plus, Recover Reduce, Enhanced Recover Reduced and Tiered programs. The software includes more than 600 customizable interchange pricing categories and miscellaneous fees for profit-driven pricing.
Payment gateway and software development company eProcessing Network LLC unveiled the ePNMobile Pro Encrypted Audio Jack Reader. The new reader allows merchants to use mobile devices and tablets to process electronic payments remotely.
First American Payment Systems L.P. released the Xion 2.5. POS terminal and said the proprietary payment processing terminal has the ability to process NFC contactless payments and Europay/MasterCard/Visa (EMV) smart cards.
Rick Rizenbergs, the company's Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing, said First American is "very excited to introduce our terminal to merchants so they are ready to accept this next-generation payment type."
Payment processor Global Payments Inc. released its Global Payments Developer Portal. The new website simplifies on-boarding processing and makes it easier for developers to access tools to enable payment processing through Global. The portal supports payments on multiple platforms, including mobile phones, e-commerce websites and POS systems.
Payment processor Heartland Payment Systems Inc. said it has installed 10,000 SmartLink network sites in under 18 months. SmartLink is a managed, Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS)-compliant network gateway for petroleum and convenience store operators.
The Payment Cards Center coordinated the addition of new web pages to the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's website to showcase its Program in Consumer Credit & Payments. The new pages consolidate the Philadelphia Fed's published research and statistics on consumer credit and payments into one area on the website.
New features include a searchable publications library, access to the bank's podcasts, a catalog of previous and upcoming events, and a page listing the Fed's subject matter experts accompanied by links to web pages summarizing their research.
Electronic commerce and payment security firm SecurityMetrics Inc. took the bronze in the Call Center of the Year category at the sixth annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service.
New Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) regulation passed the European Parliament Feb. 14, 2012, and is designed to make cross-border bank transfers faster, cheaper and safer, the European Parliament said in a release issued after the vote. European banks have until Feb. 1, 2014, to adopt the new SEPA standards.
Total Systems Services Inc. said its front-end authorization and capture platform and its back-end clearing and settlement platform are now able to process AmEx OnePoint transactions. ISO Priority Payment Systems also said it is now a OnePoint certified servicing agent. OnePoint allows small businesses to use a single source for statements, settlement and customer service for all major card brands.
VeriFone Inc. introduced the Paymedia Universal Acceptance Platform at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. The platform is a suite of services and software for mobile network operators to use when managing mobile wallet acceptance at retail POS terminals. The platform supports payments, promotions and coupons.
PARTNERSHIPSPayment gateway provider Computop Inc. teamed with data security and identity verification technology firm MagTek Inc. to develop physical POS terminals and virtual payment applications that work on Computop's Paygate 5.0 platform. Initially, the companies will focus on smart phone and tablet POS solutions.
PCI DSS compliance provider ControlScan Inc. and payment processor Vantage Card Services Inc. expanded their relationship to help small and midsize merchants achieve and maintain PCI compliance. Vantage Card Services' customers can now access ControlScan's PCI 1-2-3 compliance solutions, allowing them to analyze, remediate and validate PCI compliance.
Acquirer Elavon Inc. and MasterCard's multichannel payment gateway and fraud and risk management company, DataCash Ltd., joined to launch Elavon's Global E-Commerce Gateway solution in Europe. The solution is designed to offer more payment options, reduce fraud and increase sales for e-commerce businesses.
MasterCard and telecommunications company Telefónica S.A., the parent company of Madrid, Spain-based mobile operator Movistar, named their joint venture to create mobile financial solutions in 12 Latin American countries Wanda.
The Wanda venture will provide mobile payment solutions to more than 87 million Movistar customers. Wanda will be linked to mobile wallet or prepaid accounts and will enable money transfers, mobile airtime reloads, bill payments and retail purchases, among other services.
Payment processor Moneris Solutions said it has entered a business partnership with Global Cloud, provider of the popular online fundraising software DonorDrive. Moneris will integrate its proprietary eSelectPlus payment gateway into DonorDrive, enabling Global Cloud clients to process electronic donations and payments directly through their DonorDrive software and Moneris.
Security and identification solutions company Oberthur Technologies and European information technology provider Ingecom S.L. integrated a high-frequency chip and antenna into a SIM card to allow transactions from distances up to approximately 50 feet. Reportedly, the technology does not require an antenna-equipped handset or software or hardware modifications to the receiver.
International payment processor WorldPay US Inc. chose U.K.-headquartered BOKU Inc. as its global mobile payment partner. WorldPay will integrate BOKU's payment platform into its network to allow WorldPay merchants to accept mobile payments from customers.
ACQUISITIONSJPMC invested in GoPago Inc., a San Francisco-based mobile payment technology company. GoPago allows consumers to browse, order, and pay for goods and services using mobile phones.
Businesses can use GoPago to assess customer information and target advertising, loyalty rewards and other offers. JPMC business customers will be offered the opportunity to create GoPago mobile storefronts.
Payment processor GlobalCollect Services USA Inc. agreed to purchase Sub1, a payment service provider that boasts a 70 percent market share in Argentina. The acquisition is expected to boost Global Collect's presence in Latin America.
POS device manufacturer Ingenico SA made another investment in mobile commerce, platform-as-a-service provider ROAM Data Inc. Ingenico said the investment will spur ROAM Data's growth and allow the two companies to offer mobile commerce solutions to payment service providers worldwide. Ingenico first invested in ROAM Data in 2009 when it took a 43 percent interest in the company.
Ingk Labs, a New York firm specializing in disruptive social media technology investments, acquired ORCA, an e-commerce payment platform developed through venture capital investments. The ORCA technology will be used to build Payz, a payment platform designed to compete with PayPal.
Oberthur Technologies entered negotiations to buy mobile commerce and financial services technology company MoreMagic Solutions Inc. MoreMagic technology is reportedly used in over 30 countries.
Telecommunications and mobile payment solutions company The Paymotech Group, Mexican payment provider Boundless Payment Solutions Inc., and Mi Adelanto Corporativo, a Mexico-based financial services firm focused on the unbanked, agreed to work together to deploy Paymotech's Paytoo mobile wallet in the Mexican market. Subscribers will be able to use Paytoo to top up prepaid mobile phones and pay bills.
APPOINTMENTSJoan Herbig, Chief Executive Officer at ControlScan, was appointed to the Electronic Transactions Association's Presidential Advisory Council. She joins five other payments industry leaders on the council. The council provides advice and guidance on ETA initiatives, such as education and legislation. Herbig previously served on the ETA's Risk and Fraud Committee.
Thomas McCole is the new Executive Director of Affiliates for Heartland. McCole previously provided dealer/affiliate business development consulting services at Atomic Mobile Payments. McCole is tasked with leading Heartland's affiliate relationships, including banks, associations and value-added resellers.
Diane Merrigan was named the new Vice President of Sales for 3Delta Systems Inc., a business-to-business (B2B) payment processing and data security company. Merrigan served as Director of National Accounts at Heartland prior to joining 3Delta. Merrigan will be responsible for growing sales for the B2B processor's products and services.
In conjunction with the opening of its new office in Boca Raton, Fla., European payment company eMerchantPay Corp. hired Garima Shah as Head of U.S. Sales and Karl Persaud as Director of Business Development.
Shah was formerly Senior Vice President of Indirect Sales for Century Payments Inc., where she helped to start an ISO and partnership division. Persuad previously worked in sales and business development for the ISO Payment Alliance International.
Aaron Slominski is the new Senior Vice President of National Sales at Signature Card Services. Slominski has a decade of experience in payment processing business development and sales. He is responsible for recruiting and managing agent bank relationships, overseeing referral partners, ISO recruitment and training, and developing the company's sales force.
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