Digital Transactions Authoritative, insightful and timely information for payments professionals
A new study by Javelin Strategy and Research has a bit of good news about last-minute, or expedited, bill payments and about another hot topic, mobile payments. Some 45% of the consumer group Javelin calls “mobile bankers” make an expedited payment at least once a month compared with only 30% …
Read More »An Over-the-Air Test Could Move NFC Closer to Commercial Use
A successfully completed test of specialized mobile technology developed jointly by a U.S.-based maker of contactless-payment readers and software and a German smart card manufacturer could bring closer the commercialization of mobile phones that make point-of-sale payments in the same way contactless cards do. The test, whose results were announced …
Read More »Fiserv Scores Mobile ‘Triple Play,’ But No POS Payments Soon
Although processor Fiserv Inc. dived in to mobile banking and payments head first on Tuesday with its announcement that it would offer mobile services through three channels on one platform, it will be some time before mobile point-of-sale payments become available on the new product. Dubbed Fiserv Mobile Money, the …
Read More »Eye on the Web: Biller Direct Grows, As Does U.S. Mobile Web Usage
Both biller Web sites and bank or so-called consolidator sites are gaining market share, but biller sites are growing faster, according to recent research. Sites maintained by billers will account for 13% of all consumer bill payments this year, up from 11% in 2007. Consolidator sites, meanwhile, will handle 11% …
Read More »Commercial in ’09. Visa Alerts Will Include Two-Way Messaging
Visa Inc., which on Monday announced a pilot project to deliver transaction alerts to cardholders' mobile phones and e-mail inboxes, expects to launch the service some time next year as a commercial service for its members, Visa executives say. While the pilot, which involves eight banks in the U.S. and …
Read More »Shift to Discount Stores Hurts First Data, But New Products Await
Merchant transaction volume increased by a healthy 11% at processor First Data Corp. in the second quarter, but a marked shift by consumers toward debit cards and spending at big discounters lowered margins at the card industry's biggest processor. Debit's growth has been outpacing credit's for years, but in a …
Read More »Industry Insiders Say Billing Gaining Ground for Mobile Content Payments
A survey of about 100 mobile and broadband executives indicates the wireless bill is rapidly gaining support as a vehicle for handling payments for digital-content downloads to mobile devices in the U.S. But at the same time the executives expressed doubts about the prospects for payments via near-field communication (NFC) …
Read More »Obopay’s Price Hike Has Evoked No User Complaints, Processor Says
Mobile-payments processor Obopay Inc., which is increasing its fee to send money to 25 cents from 10 cents effective Aug. 7, says it has not had complaints from users despite the more than doubling in the transaction price. “We're pleased we got it right,” says Gregory Holmes, president of Obopay …
Read More »An Impatient ISO Retools to Sell Emerging Transaction Technology
International Merchant Services Inc., which has taken on all new senior management over the past 11 months, is launching a new marketing blitz this week whose underlying message might be characterized as impatience with the electronic transactions business. Hoping to accelerate the progress of promising payment technology that for a …
Read More »Obopay Maps a Strategy for Mobile Payments in ‘Niche’ Markets
Mobile-payments processor Obopay Inc.'s recent agreement to provide services for a handset-based remittance product from MasterCard Worldwide (Digital Transactions News, June 19) is part of a wider strategy at Obopay to develop services in a variety of payment markets, including prepaid top-up, payroll, and benefits payments as well as remittances, …
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