Industry Leaders Give Insight into Debit Loyalty Programs Post-Durbin

September 20, 2011 09:05 AM Eastern Daylight Time 

(BUSINESS WIRE) PYMNTS.com:

Presenters: Steve VanFleet (RewardsNOW), Tim Kolk (TRK Advisors)

Moderator: Margaret Weichert (Market Platform Dynamics)

Webinar Date: Thursday, October 6, 2011 from 1-2 p.m. ET

In this complimentary live webinar hosted by RewardsNOW’s CEO Steve VanFleet, learn how to navigate the necessary loyalty program waters in this time of change.

In this session, participants will learn:

• How will loyalty programs – both for major FIs as well as credit unions and community banks – be impacted by the Fed’s new debit rules?
• What changes will have to be incorporated into these programs to make them viable, both for banks and consumers?
• Is there a plausible scenario under which FIs can use these programs to offset losses from debit interchange caps?
• What are the risks to FIs of merchant “tender steering” given this new environment and what can FIs do to offset that risk?
• What are the “best practices” now as it relates to loyalty in a post-Durbin world?

Steve VanFleet has been involved in most aspects of the electronic payments business over the last 25 years. Currently, he manages a rapidly growing company dedicated to the delivery of broad-based and dynamic loyalty programs for financial institutions. Previous positions include SVP of Product and Business Development for First Data Merchant Services.

Click here to sign up for the complimentary loyalty program webinar.

About RewardsNOW

For 14 years, RewardsNOW has been helping create robust Loyalty Programs for some of the best financial service providers. While the core business has historically been helping community banks, credit unions, and regional and national banks offer their own Loyalty Programs, they’ve expanded to help other industries attract, retain and grow their customer base, as well. Wherever there's a need for growth through loyalty, you'll find RewardsNOW.

About PYMNTS.com

PYMNTS.com is an online media channel that captures user-generated and expert-driven commentary, information, news, and analysis on “what’s next” in the payments sector worldwide. The site provides a platform for industry professionals to share content related to company and product developments, to tap into the collective commentary and analysis from experts, bloggers and industry pundits, and to interact with industry thought leaders and other influencers on topics of critical importance to the future of the sector. A joint venture of Business Wire, a Berkshire Hathaway Company, and Market Platform Dynamics, PYMNTS.com redefines the ways in which B2B news and information is both generated and distributed.

Sprint First to Launch Google Wallet with Nexus S 4G

September 19, 2011 04:25 PM Eastern Daylight Time 

Sprint Launches First Google Wallet

Nexus S 4G is the first smartphone with Google Wallet; users can now make their phones their wallet and make purchases with a single tap using NFC

Sprint 

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sprint (NYSE: S) and Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) today announced the rollout of Google Wallet to all Nexus S 4G customers – an app that enables consumers to transform their phones into their wallets and make purchases with a simple tap. Sprint is the first carrier and Nexus S 4G is the first phone in the United States to deliver this convenient, innovative service that lets shoppers tap-to-pay at hundreds of thousands of participating retailers, including American Eagle Outfitters, the Container Store, Macy’s, Foot Locker and Subway.

“Shipping Google Wallet to Sprint is a crucial first step in creating a new way for people to use their phones to make shopping faster and easier”

“Sprint is thrilled to be the first U.S. carrier to offer Google Wallet,” said Fared Adib, vice president of Product at Sprint. “Nexus S 4G is the first to receive new versions of Android software, and today’s upgrade puts the near-field communications, or NFC, chip in the phone to work so customers can have a secure virtual wallet on their phone. NFC capabilities on smartphones open the door to a new level of convenience and security.”

Google Wallet is a free Android app that stores virtual versions of a customer’s credit cards, offers and loyalty cards right on the one device they always have with them – their phone. At launch today, Google Wallet supports Citi^® MasterCard^® credit cards and the Google Prepaid MasterCard, powered by First Data. Google plans to support additional cards.

Google Wallet is designed to enable safe, secure payments. It requires users to set up a Google Wallet PIN that must be entered before making a purchase to prevent unauthorized access and payments.

“Shipping Google Wallet to Sprint is a crucial first step in creating a new way for people to use their phones to make shopping faster and easier,” said Osama Bedier, vice president of Payments at Google. “The world is on the brink of the next big shift in payments, and today’s announcement demonstrates that we’re making real progress in attaining the vision we share with our partners for a new and innovative mobile payments platform. We believe this is just the beginning of a transformation that’s soon to come.”

To find a participating merchant, customers can use MasterCard’s PayPass locator app for Android or visithttp://www.google.com/wallet/where-it-works.html.

How to Get Google Wallet

Eligible Sprint Nexus S 4G customers will be prompted to download the latest version of Android software. Once this download is complete, customers can launch the Wallet app to try it.

Nexus S 4G from Sprint

Featuring the blazing speeds of Sprint 4G and a pure Google experience with Android™ 2.3, Gingerbread, Nexus S 4G is available today in Sprint stores and through www.Sprint.com for $49.99 with eligible upgrade or new two-year contract and after a $50 mail-in rebate via reward card¹ (pricing excludes taxes). Nexus S 4G requires activation on one of the Sprint Everything Data plans plus a required $10 Premium Data add-on charge for smartphones. Sprint’s Everything Data plan with Any Mobile, Anytime^SM includes unlimited Web, texting and calling to and from any mobile in America while on the Sprint Network, starting at just $69.99 per month plus required $10 Premium Data add-on charge (pricing excludes taxes and surcharges).

About Sprint Nextel

Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 52 million customers at the end of 2Q 2011 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone.Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 6 in its 2010 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint andwww.twitter.com/sprint.

¹ The American Express Prepaid Reward Card (“Card”) provided in connection with this Rebate offer is a prepaid Card that is usable at U.S. merchants that accept American Express Card. Some limitations apply. The Card is not redeemable for cash (except where required by law) and does not provide ATM access. Use of Card constitutes acknowledgement that it is given as a reward and no consideration, value, or money has been paid by the holder to American Express in exchange for this Card. USE OF CARD IS SUBJECT TO THE CARDHOLDER AGREEMENT. SUBJECT TO APPLICABLE LAW, A $3.00 MONTHLY FEE WILL BE ASSESED AGAINST CARD BALANCE, STARTING SIX MONTHS AFTER CARD ISSUANCE, UNLESS FUNDS ARE EARLIER DEPLETED. For BALANCE, customer service and Cardholder Agreement, visit americanexpress.com/sprint or call 866-608-3756. Card issued by American Express Prepaid Card Management Corporation.

Contacts

Sprint
Emmy Anderson, 913-707-0618
emmy.anderson@sprint.com

Shopping On-the-Go? Yes…There’s an App for That: mark Launches Portable Shopping Application

September 19, 2011 03:12 PM Eastern Daylight Time 

Rome Data

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--mark, the beauty and fashion boutique brand created by Avon Products, announces the launch of its first mobile sales application: a portable version of its online store. The new application allows mark representatives to share their favorite mark products and complete sale transactions with their customers anytime, anywhere. mark’s mobile application was developed in collaboration with ROAM Data, a leading mCommerce platform provider, to offer mCommerce capabilities on mobile phones and devices that are similar to those of the mark representatives’ online boutiques.

“mark mobile represents true innovation in direct selling. Gone are the days of filling out cumbersome paper forms and insecurely writing down credit card numbers to fulfill orders”

“mark representatives are already sharing and wearing their favorite fashion and beauty trends while on-the-go and now they have the opportunity to boost their business in the process by making a sale on the spot,” says Annemarie Frank, Executive Director, Digital and Business Development for mark. “A recent survey of our mark representatives revealed that 99 percent of them carry their phones most or all of the time. Observing the continuing shift of consumer sales from in-store to online, we knew creating a mobile application would put the power of sales in our representatives’ hands all the time.”

mark’s mobile application was developed to enable mobile catalog browsing, secure order entry and electronic payment functions, allowing sales to be completed easily and efficiently. Using the mobile application, mark brand representatives have the ability to search and share specific products, and process customer orders and credit cards securely in real-time. A future release will include the ability for a representative to swipe a credit or debit card with a secure card reader plugged into the smartphone that provides further convenience for consumers and cost savings for the company.

"mark mobile represents true innovation in direct selling. Gone are the days of filling out cumbersome paper forms and insecurely writing down credit card numbers to fulfill orders,” says Rob Stringer, Vice President of Marketing and Products at ROAM. “mark is at the forefront of leveraging mobile technology to improve its representatives' businesses. We at ROAM are proud to partner with such a forward-thinking company and will continue to innovate to help mark's mobile business succeed."

mark representatives will be able to redeem coupon codes for mark promotions. After a purchase is made, customers will get an e-mail confirmation of their purchase. mark’s mobile application is free of cost to mark representatives and is available for the iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch and various Android smartphones and tablets. It can be downloaded in the iTunes App Store and the Android Marketplace.

A significant benefit of being a mark representative is having the opportunity to develop valuable business skills, which are learned through managing a small business. mark’s mobile application gives mark representatives a high tech and high touch advantage, allowing them to combine in person business skills with cutting edge technology while earning commission on sales.

About mark

mark is an expertly edited, on-trend beauty & fashion boutique brand that connects, engages and empowers young women to express their individuality and make their mark…in their own way, on their own terms. mark was created by Avon Products, Inc. in 2003 to re-imagine direct selling for the digital age and has been providing young women with the opportunity to open and grow their own businesses ever since.

mark’s customizable product portfolio includes first-to-market beauty innovations and on-trend fashion and accessories items. The portfolio is currently available for purchase in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. For more information, visit www.meetmark.com or follow mark on Facebook at facebook.com/mark-girl, Twitter @markgirl or on YouTube atyoutube.com/markgirlTV.

Facebook® is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc.

About ROAM Data

ROAM Data is the leading mCommerce platform provider that extends both physical Point of Sales (POS) and eCommerce to the mobile environment. It provides patented mCommerce software-as-a-service, payment peripherals, and a platform of development tools that enable scalable mobile commerce applications to help merchants win customer spend and loyalty.

Examples of ROAM applications include ROAMpay X, that turns merchants’ mobile devices into secure POS terminals to accept payment anywhere; ROAMoffers and ROAMwallet, that enables merchants to deliver compelling offers to their consumers’ cell phones that can be conveniently and securely acted upon. ROAM also provides a set of tools (APIs, SDK, IDE) for developers to build their own mobile POS or eCommerce apps on ROAM’s platform. Visit us at www.roamdata.com.

Contacts

Kaplow
Jacqueline Agosta, 212-221-1713
jagosta@kaplowpr.com
or
mark
Jessica Goon, 212-282-8082
Jessica.goon@avon.com
or
ROAM Data
Rob Stringer, 857-254-2411
rstringer@roamdata.com

Tyfone to License SideTap™ MicroSD NFC and Secure Element Card Technologies to AboMem

September 19, 2011 07:57 AM Eastern Daylight Time 

Strategic relationship with AboMem includes go-to-market distribution of SideTap cards across China

PORTLAND, Ore. & TAIPEI, Taiwan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Tyfone (www.tyfone.com) announced today an agreement with AboMem Technology Corp. (www.abomem.com.tw), Taiwan’s premier memory products manufacturing company, to manufacture, distribute and service Tyfone’s SideTap™ microSD NFC products. This partnership also includes a widespread distribution of SideTap microSD cards to consumers throughout The People’s Republic of China via AboMem’s extensive distribution network.

“This announcement demonstrates that Tyfone will be equipped with the manufacturing capabilities that will be critical for matching incoming demand for NFC hardware as the floodgates are opened.”

Tyfone’s patented SideTap microSD product can be added to mobile devices for enabling secure element functionality with NFC connectivity. SideTap is a unique feature of Tyfone’s groundbreaking u4ia® platform that provides end-to-end mobile financial services solutions from informational services and commerce to secure identity and contactless payments via NFC.

“A necessary element required for the success of add-on NFC and secure element capabilities is the ability to scale to meet demand,” said Nick Holland, senior analyst with the Yankee Group. “This announcement demonstrates that Tyfone will be equipped with the manufacturing capabilities that will be critical for matching incoming demand for NFC hardware as the floodgates are opened.”

“AboMem has partnered with Tyfone because of its commitment, innovation, superior technology and patent portfolio for enabling mobile commerce,” said Aaron Yang, chairman of AboMem. “AboMem has seen Tyfone evolve SideTap from the prototype phase into a market-ready solution, and is excited to take our relationship to the next level and look forward to achieving success in China and the rest of the world.”

This agreement leverages AboMem’s established manufacturing and distribution infrastructure with Tyfone’s design and manufacturing know-how to achieve wide-scale adoption of an add-on secure element solution.

“Tyfone’s partnership with AboMem in China enables Tyfone to scale its business with a recognized leader in manufacturing memory products, and unleash its established distribution supply chain,” said Prabhakar Tadepalli, Tyfone’s president of Asia Pacific and chief operating officer. “The support AboMem has provided Tyfone over the past several years for our vision for mobile commerce has been invaluable, and we look forward to our partnership and the opportunity to serve the world’s largest consumer market.”

Companies wishing to deploy SideTap microSD secure element solutions will be able to purchase directly from AboMem, a recognized manufacturer, while working with Tyfone on TSM software integration for identity provisioning and implementation of mobility services.

For more information on Tyfone’s SideTap microSD solution, please visit: www.tyfone.com/product-contactless-payment.

About AboMem

AboMem Technology Corporation specializes in designing, manufacturing and marketing portable memory products and various test devices of memory products. To provide users in suitable storage device, AboMem’s developed products include Linear Flash Card, SRAM Card, IDE Card, Multi Media Card, SD and MoBe USB Drive.

AboMem has the strongest capability in memory storage device to support both OEM and ODM style for customers. That is why internationally well-known customers seeking to create customer-designed products select AboMem. Since its establishment AboMem has been not only capable to supply specialized memory storage device compliance with customer's requirement but also continuously enhance performance and innovation in quality, price and service to meet the world standard. For more information visitwww.abomem.com.tw.

About Tyfone

Founded in 2004, Tyfone’s corporate headquarters are in Portland, Oregon, and its Asia-Pacific headquarters are in Bangalore, India. Tyfone connects money and mobility via a highly secure, scalable and flexible mobile financial services solution tailored to meet the evolving needs of consumers, financial institutions, mobile network operators, transportation companies and retailers. Operating in any standard memory card slot, Tyfone’s u4ia® platform and its companion SideTap™ memory card comprise the world’s first patented, neutral, and comprehensive memory card-based payments solution for mobile contactless payments. Tyfone and its partners enable a suite of services including Mobile Banking, Mobile Identity Management, Mobile Remote Payments, Mobile Retail Services and Mobile Contactless Payments. For more information visit www.tyfone.com.

Joining Forces to Bring a New Generation of Touch-based NFC Products and Services to Healthcare

September 19, 2011 03:18 PM Eastern Daylight Time

DAYTON, Ohio & LAUSANNE, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Standard Register (NYSE: SR), a recognized leader in managing critical information and communications for healthcare, and Poken, a Swiss-based technology company, announced today they have joined forces to launch a new product and service platform, pokenHEALTH™, which Standard Register will exclusively market to healthcare in North America.

“Our platform caters to these needs, while providing a secure and confidential platform for continued interaction.”

“This exclusive relationship brings together Poken’s market leadership in real-world, social media with our healthcare expertise to offer clients an unprecedented way to transform events, build stronger connections with their stakeholders and truly differentiate their brand,” said Scott Wallace vice president of strategic development for Standard Register Healthcare, a business unit of Standard Register that serves 62 percent of U.S. hospitals.

“Together, we have the opportunity to transform events and help hospitals create connections with people that are fun and memorable,” said Stéphane Doutriaux, founder & CEO of Poken. “Our platform caters to these needs, while providing a secure and confidential platform for continued interaction.”

pokenHEALTH provides healthcare marketers with a leading-edge suite of interactive, touch-based marketing tools to manage community and professional events. Using Swiss watch-industry microelectronic knowledge, pokenHEALTH runs on a unique, near-field communication (NFC)-enabled ecosystem of Poken devices, smart phone apps and tags that allow meeting participants to interact with each other and the sponsor. Users can collect and share contact information, event materials and other resources. Data is wirelessly and instantly sent from one device to the other based on the proximity of their keychain devices or smart phones.

No Personally Identifiable Information (PII) or Protected Health Information (PHI) is exchanged, only unique metadata identifiers, which are uploaded to the user’s secure, private online hub where the user can view the people and information collected throughout the event. The private hub can live on long after the event, allowing the sponsor to nurture connections.

“What makes pokenHEALTH great is not the Poken technology alone, but the user experience. The consumer interface is amazingly intuitive, colorful and engaging – something you rarely see in healthcare today. This marks the first milestone with our friends in Switzerland. Every day, we think of new ways it could be used to transform interactions within healthcare,” said Yeva Roberts, emerging technology strategist for Standard Register Healthcare.

“The introduction of this new suite of products and services is a natural extension of our strategy. It has the power to enhance the meeting experience and help our customers elevate their brand and advance their reputation,” Wallace added.

pokenHEALTH made its debut last week at the Society of Healthcare Strategy and Marketing Development’s (SHSMD) annual conference, Connections 2011, in Phoenix, Arizona. The innovative Poken devices were provided to participants during event registration and showcased in this product video.

About Standard Register

Standard Register (NYSE: SR) is trusted by the world's leading companies to advance their reputations by aligning their communications with corporate standards and priorities. Standard Register Healthcare is a business unit of Standard Register, serving more than 3,100 clients from across the healthcare delivery network, including acute, ambulatory, and long-term care, managed care and the suppliers that support them. A recognized leader in managing critical information and communications, SR Healthcare, together with Dialog Medical, a subsidiary of Standard Register, provides industry-leading technology, solutions and services to accelerate performance, attract and educate patients, enhance patient safety, and improve the quality of care. More information is available atwww.standardregister.com/healthcare.

About Poken

Poken enhances your social networking experience by providing a 360-degree experience to people meeting in the real world, sharing an experience, and staying in touch both on and offline. With NFC technology built-in, we deliver flexible turnkey solutions allowing users to collect people, places and things with a touch. Headquartered in Switzerland, Poken is the recognized market leader, with enthusiastic clients in over 50 countries – and expanding - supported by a growing network of resellers. Poken has attracted significant media attention around the world, and has won a number of awards for technical innovation and excellence. For more information, visithttp://www.poken.com.

Google Granted Worldwide License to Visa's payWave NFC Technology

September 19, 2011 04:10 PM Eastern Daylight Time 

Visa and Google Sign Licensing Deal to Boost Mobile Payment Adoption

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Visa Inc., Visa Europe and Google today announced that Google has received a worldwide license to Visa payWave, an innovative NFC-based payment technology. Visa payWave enables consumers to make fast and secure payments at retail locations by waving their mobile phone in front of a payment terminal and is currently accepted at hundreds of thousands of retail locations worldwide.

“This agreement extends Google Wallet to Visa account holders worldwide”

The agreement sets the stage for Visa-issuing banks worldwide to enable Visa account holders to add their credit, debit and prepaid accounts to Google Wallet – a mobile application that turns a smart phone into a digital wallet. This is the latest effort by Visa and Google to simplify the consumer shopping experience by enabling them to make mobile payments using their mobile phones.

“Mobile technology is transforming how people pay for goods and services,” said Jim McCarthy, global head of product, Visa Inc. “This agreement builds on Visa’s strategy of enabling consumers to make mobile payments with whatever device they choose using the trusted accounts they already have.”

“This agreement extends Google Wallet to Visa account holders worldwide,” said Stephanie Tilenius, vice president of Commerce and Payments at Google. “This is a crucial step towards realizing our shared vision for the future of mobile commerce – one that creates a rich shopping experience for consumers and merchants alike.”

Today’s news furthers Visa’s progress in making its products available as a payment option in any digital wallet. This includes Visa’s own digital wallet announced earlier this year which is designed to provide consumers with “click-to-buy” payment functionality and access to their Visa and non-Visa accounts using a personal computer or smart phone, to make purchases online and at retail locations.

Google Wallet is designed to enable an open commerce ecosystem enabling consumers to carry payment cards, offers, loyalty and gift cards -- and eventually much more. Google is also working with top retail brands to create a new mobile shopping experience.

About Visa Inc.:

Visa Inc. (NYSE:V) is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable digital currency. Underpinning digital currency is one of the world’s most advanced processing networks—VisaNet—that is capable of handling more than 20,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and guaranteed payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank, and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: Pay now with debit, ahead of time with prepaid or later with credit products. For more information, visitwww.corporate.visa.com.

About Visa Europe:

As a leader in the development and implementation of payments technologies, Visa Europe is at the forefront of contactless and mobile payment innovation in Europe.

Visa Europe is owned and operated by more than 4,000 European member banks and was incorporated in July 2004. In October 2007, Visa Europe became independent of the new global Visa Inc., with an exclusive, irrevocable and perpetual licence in Europe. As a dedicated European payment system it is able to respond quickly to the specific market needs of European banks and their customers - cardholders and retailers - and to meet the European Commission’s objective to create a true internal market for payments. For more information, visit www.visaeurope.com.

About Google:

Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) is a global technology leader focused on improving the ways people connect with information. Google’s innovations in web search and advertising have made its website a top internet property and its brand one of the most recognized in the world. For more information, visit www.google.com/about.html.

Contacts

Press & Analysts Only:
Visa Inc.:
Elvira Swanson, +1-415-932-2564
globalmedia@visa.com
or
Visa Europe:
Eleanor Orebi Gann, +44 207 795 5291
eleanor.orebigann@visa.com
or
Google:
Nathan Tyler, +1-650-930-3555
press@google.com

Visa’s Yearly Payments Volume in Latin America and the Caribbean Grew to 26.2%

September 19, 2011 01:27 PM Eastern Daylight Time 

MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) reported a total payments volume in Latin America and the Caribbean of US$ 313 billion, representing a year to date 26.2% growth during the 12 months closing on June 30, 2011. Quarterly results² confirm this trend with US$ 86 billion in total payments volume, for a 28.7% growth.

“At the same time, we are advancing an aggressive innovation agenda to drive the migration to Visa products, while delivering new products and services that add value in areas such as mobile, digital money transfer and person-to-person payments”

“A cornerstone of Visa’s strategy to extend its leadership in its core credit and debit products is driving greater usage at the point of sale, particularly in key emerging markets such as Latin America and the Caribbean, where the migration process from cash to electronic payments is still at an early stage,” said Eduardo Eraña, President of Visa Latin America and Caribbean. “At the same time, we are advancing an aggressive innovation agenda to drive the migration to Visa products, while delivering new products and services that add value in areas such as mobile, digital money transfer and person-to-person payments,” added Mr. Eraña.

This approach is achieving results with credit and debit payments in Latin America and the Caribbean growing at 23.9% and 29.3% respectively, in the 12 months closing on June 30, 2011.

Recent company announcements in Latin America and the Caribbean include the launch of a Debit Conversion Platform; the activation of Visa sponsorship rights for both, the FIFA U-17 World Cup Mexico and the FIFA U-20 World Cup Colombia; the acquisition of South Africa based mobile payments company Fundamo, specialized in mobile payments in emerging markets; and the publication of studies on the spending habits of tourists in and from Brazil and Mexico.

About Visa

Visa is a global payments technology company that connects consumers, businesses, financial institutions and governments in more than 200 countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable digital currency. Underpinning digital currency is one of the world’s most advanced processing networks—VisaNet—that is capable of handling more than 20,000 transaction messages a second, with fraud protection for consumers and guaranteed payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank and does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa’s innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to offer consumers more choices: pay now with debit, ahead of time with prepaid or later with credit products. For more information, visit www.corporate.visa.com.

¹ All growth data quoted in this release is in Constant US$ terms.

² In constant USD terms for the three months closing on June 30, 2011.

Payment Alliance International Named 2011 Hot Dozen Company

12 of the Hottest Early Stage Companies in Louisville Debuted at 21c Museum Hotel

LOUISVILLE, Ky.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Payment Alliance International (PAI), a leader in electronic payment processing solutions and the Electronic Transactions Association’s (ETA) 2011 “ISO of the Year,” has been named a 2011 Hot Dozen company by Greater Louisville Inc.’s EnterpriseCorp. The Hot Dozen is an annual celebration of 12 locally owned companies that have benefited from Louisville’s entrepreneurial atmosphere and continue to flourish in our region. The companies represent the cutting edge of innovation and entrepreneurship in Louisville’s business community.

John J. Leehy, III, president and chief executive officer of Payment Alliance International, states, “We are honored to have been selected as a 2011 Hot Dozen company from Greater Louisville Inc.’s EnterpriseCorp and are excited to be sharing this recognition with such a terrific group of Louisville companies. Our team loves what we do, and the fact that we get to do it in such a wonderful, 'business friendly' city as Louisville makes it all the better. We’re proud to call this town home and grateful for the unending support and encouragement we receive.”

Honoring them is part of EnterpriseCorp’s mission to create a new culture of entrepreneurship, provide strategic and network solutions that help client companies realize their full potential and dramatically increase the number and quality of fast-growth, entrepreneurial companies headquartered in our region.

“This year’s dozen is an exceptional group. We are confident they will add to the tradition of success realized by several of our past honorees. This year’s group shows a continued strength in life sciences, a strong push in software, and unique approaches to distribution of novel services and products. All these companies boast outstanding teams and 'think big' mentalities. Several also display the ability to quickly create employment opportunities for the community. We really look forward to cheering on their continued development,” commented Bobby Ferreri, EnterpriseCorp executive director.

Founded in 2005, PAI has experienced explosive growth through innovative products and superior service. Today, the company has more than 80,000 customers and is the largest ATM deployer in North America, with more than 56,000 locations in the PAI Alliance Network. Uniquely positioned in the payments marketplace, PAI offers payment solutions to retailers, financial institutions and market distributors that encompass credit and debit processing, check services, cash management solutions, ATM branding and ATM management.

The company was honored in an event held Sept. 14 at 21c Museum Hotel and sponsored by Hilliard Lyons. Payment Alliance International is proud to earn the Hot Dozen distinction and enjoy the opportunity to be a part of the thriving entrepreneurial community of Greater Louisville.

About Payment Alliance International (PAI)

Payment Alliance International is a leading provider of payment processing solutions for businesses nationwide and has been recognized as the 2011 “ISO of the Year” by the Electronic Transactions Association (ETA). We are the world’s largest deployer of ATMs and provide ATM processing and maintenance services, ATM equipment sales and support and ATM branding programs. We also provide comprehensive payment solutions including credit, debit, and prepaid card acceptance services, remote deposit capture and check processing, mobile payments and eCommerce solutions…all designed to maximize customer success and make business easy. Payment Alliance International is based in Louisville, Ky., with offices in West Palm Beach, Fla., Jackson, Miss., and Billings, Mont. For more information, please visit www.GoPAI.com.

About EnterpriseCorp

EnterpriseCorp is the enterprise development arm of Greater Louisville Inc. - The Metro Chamber of Commerce that cultivates Louisville’s entrepreneurial vitality. With help from community partners, they keep Louisville at the top of the nation’s list of “entrepreneurial hot spots” by serving the companies that create the vast majority of new wealth, new revenue and new jobs. Clients range from technology start-ups to established, fast-growth companies to mature businesses in traditional industries. EnterpriseCorp provides the voice, outreach, assistance and education for all that is entrepreneurial in Greater Louisville. For more information on EnterpriseCorp, visitwww.EnterpriseCorp.com.

ViVOtech Hires Seasoned Industry Executive for VP of Operations Post

SOURCE: ViVOtech, Inc.

September 20, 2011 08:00 ET

VeriFone and Ingenico Experience Makes Eric Lecesne Best Man to Take on Role and Responsibilities at NFC Pioneer, Says ViVOtech CEO

SANTA CLARA, CA--(Marketwire - Sep 20, 2011) - ViVOtech, the NFC (near field communication) software and systems company, today announced that the former president and chief operating officer of mobile payments innovator Way Systems, Eric Lecesne, has joined the company as vice president of operations and supply chain. In his new role Lecesne will be responsible for leading ViVOtech's manufacturing, supply chain management, post-sales customer support organization, as well as cross-functional program management for new product development.

"The NFC market is on the verge of rapid growth and high volume manufacturability and scalable supply chain for our system products are going to be critical success elements in ViVOtech's point of sale (POS) systems business," said Michael (Mick) Mullagh, ViVOtech chief executive officer. "There is no one in this industry better qualified to take on these responsibilities than Eric as we ramp the sales and distribution of new readers and introduce several new NFC products."

After graduating from the Polytechnic Institute of Grenoble, Lecesne began his career at Hewlett Packard, where he served 20 years in various roles before joining the electronic payments company VeriFone as general manager (GM) in charge of marketing as well as research and development (R&D).

Following VeriFone, Lecesne was GM, executive vice-president and chief technology officer responsible for marketing, R&D and manufacturing for Ingenico, a provider of payment solutions.

"It took 10 years, but the market has finally caught up with ViVOtech's vision and ground-breaking NFC software and systems," said Lecesne. "I believe the next five years will demonstrate absolute validation of ViVOtech's leadership and adoption around the world of our cutting-edge technology."

About ViVOtechViVOtech, the near field communication (NFC) software and systems company, enables rich mobile commerce solutions for in-store payment, loyalty, marketing, and merchandising. Merchant, payment, mobile, web and advertising companies use ViVOtech solutions to enhance customer experience and grow their business. ViVOtech's NFC software and systems are the broadest, most tested and deployed worldwide. Founded in 2001, Silicon Valley-based ViVOtech provides the key building blocks of the NFC ecosystem: smart applications for enhancing the customer experience, wallet and trusted service manager (TSM) software, and point of sale systems. ViVOtech's investors include Alloy Ventures, Citi Ventures, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, DFJ Gotham, EDBI, First Data Corporation, Miven Ventures, Motorola Mobility, Motorola Solutions, Nokia Growth Partners, NCR, SingTel Innov8 and Sprint. Join the NFC revolution at http://www.ViVOtech.com.

Smart Card Alliance White Paper Focuses on U.S. Mobile Payments and NFC Landscape

SOURCE: The Smart Card Alliance

PRINCETON JUNCTION, NJ--(Marketwire)  - There is much buzz around the growth of mobile payments in the United States, with predictions that it will hit $214 billion by 2014.* But which of the many possible approaches -- including integrated NFC, non-integrated contactless, bar codes, cloud-based solutions, and text messaging -- is the best choice? The Smart Card Alliance explains and compares the different mobile payment approaches in a new white paper released today, "The Mobile Payments and NFC Landscape: A U.S. Perspective."

The white paper provides an overview of the current state of the market for mobile payments and NFC-enabled payment applications in the U.S., and evaluates the advantages and disadvantages of different mobile payment approaches. It is available as a free download on the Smart Card Alliance website, http://www.smartcardalliance.org/pages/publications-the-mobile-payments-and-nfc-landscape-a-us-perspective.

"Technology is always changing, especially within the mobile and payments industries, so it is difficult to predict when and how mobile payments will become commonplace in the United States," said Randy Vanderhoof, executive director of the Smart Card Alliance. "The goal of this white paper is to help industry stakeholders understand the current mobile payments landscape, anticipate how mobile payments are likely to change, and appreciate the opportunities that mobile payments, and particularly NFC-enabled mobile contactless payments, present."

Some of the topics covered in this snapshot of mobile payments include:

• A description of the different types of mobile financial applications in use today
• Discussion of the different mobile payments approaches with implementation examples
• A summary of the merchant, consumer, issuer, and mobile operator requirements for NFC mobile proximity payments and the attendant benefits
• An update on the status of Near-Field Communications (NFC) mobile proximity payments infrastructure
• Evaluation of how different mobile payment approaches fulfill overall market requirements

Payments Council members involved in the development of this white paper included: Accenture; American Express; Apriva; Bank of America; Capgemini; Capital One; Connexem Consulting; CPI Card Group; Datacard Group; DeviceFidelity; Discover Financial Services; Gemalto; Giesecke & Devrient; Heartland Payment Systems; Infineon Technologies; INSIDE Secure; JPMorgan Chase; LTK Engineering Services; MasterCard Worldwide; NACHA; NagraID Security; NXP Semiconductors; Oberthur Technologies; Quadagno & Associates; Thales e-Security; WatchData Technologies USA; VeriFone; Visa Inc.; ViVOtech; and Mike Kutsch; Dale Laszig; and Chandra Srivastava.

Additional resources can be found on the Smart Card Alliance NFC Resources Web page.

About the Smart Card Alliance Payments Council
The Smart Card Alliance Payments Council focuses on facilitating the adoption of chip-enabled payments and payment applications in the U.S. through education programs for consumers, merchants, issuers, acquirers/processors, government regulators, mobile telecommunications providers and payments service providers. The group is bringing together payments industry stakeholders, including payments industry leaders, merchants and suppliers, and is working on projects related to implementing EMV, contactless payments, NFC-enabled payments and applications, mobile payments, and chip-enabled e-commerce. The Council's primary goal is to inform and educate the market about the value of chip-enabled payments in improving the security of the payments infrastructure and in enhancing the value of payments and payment-related applications for industry stakeholders. Council participation is open to any Smart Card Alliance member who wishes to contribute to the Council projects.

*Aite Group, November 2010

About the Smart Card Alliance
The Smart Card Alliance is a not-for-profit, multi-industry association working to stimulate the understanding, adoption, use and widespread application of smart card technology.

Through specific projects such as education programs, market research, advocacy, industry relations and open forums, the Alliance keeps its members connected to industry leaders and innovative thought. The Alliance is the single industry voice for smart cards, leading industry discussion on the impact and value of smart cards in the U.S. and Latin America. For more information please visit http://www.smartcardalliance.org.