16 April, 2009
category: Contactless, Financial, NFC
MasterCard Canada, in partnership with Citi Cards Canada and Bell Mobility, has completed the first near-field communications trial of Mobile PayPass in Canada. This was the first trial in Canada to use Bell Mobility’s wireless network enabling participants to make purchases using their mobile device at MasterCard PayPass acceptance locations across Canada.
The four-month closed trial took place at Bell Mobility’s Creekbank office in Ontario and approximately 75 employees from Bell, Citi Cards and MasterCard participated. The average transaction amount during the trial was just under $20, which is ideal for merchants in high-volume, small-ticket purchase businesses.
The PayPass payment application is stored inside the NFC-capable mobile phone’s built-in “secure area.” Users have individual control of the payment application in the phone’s secure area. The PayPass payment application on these phones can also be password protected so that a lost or stolen handset cannot be used to make payments.