Visa OK’s commercial launch of mobile contactless payment solution
07 December, 2010
category: Contactless, NFC
Visa announced the commercial availability of DeviceFidelity’s In2Pay mobile contactless payments solution for financial institutions in the U.S. and select markets.
Following 18-months of technology development in partnership with DeviceFidelity, and trials with financial institutions in the United States, Europe and Asia, Visa has tested and supports commercialization of In2Pay microSD for use with leading smart phones.
Smart phone models compatible for use with the solution include the BlackBerry BoldTM 96502, the iPhone 4, the iPhone 3GS, iPhone 3G, and the Android based Samsung Vibrant Galaxy 5. Visa says it expects to add additional phone models in the future, including phones based on the Symbian and Windows operating systems.
Issuers who choose to adopt the technology can provide their account holders with a microSD card that can be inserted into the phone’s existing memory slot to enable the device for payment. The technology is compatible with existing contactless payment terminals already installed at retail outlets worldwide and enables account holders to simply pass the phone in front a payment terminal in order to pay.
According to Visa, financial institutions have the option to integrate Visa’s mobile payment solution into their existing mobile application, and offer additional services such as Visa transaction alerts that notify account holders in near real-time of account activity, and targeted merchant offers tailored to consumer lifestyle and location.
“This is a significant step towards the next generation of payments, loyalty and rewards, allowing banks and retailers to build entirely new business models,” said Nick Holland, senior analyst with Yankee Group. “Visa’s announcement clearly illustrates that the future of payments will be mobile.”