Thursday, September 6, 2012

Nokia unveils Windows Phone 8 devices with NFC

ePaymentNews

4 new results for NFC Mobile Payment

NFC mobile payments for Samsung Galaxy S3 courtesy of Orange and ...
Android Authority
Good news for UK-based Samsung Galaxy S3 owners on Orange – Quick Tap NFC mobile payments are available to customers starting today. Thanks to a partnership between Orange and Barclaycard, the Galaxy S3 will be the first device to allow Quick Tap ...
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Android Authority

Developers switch to Windows Phone as app momentum continues
Reuters
With new opportunities to innovate around features such as PureView camera technology, NFC and the integration of Nokia Maps, we look forward to developers creating their next generation app experiences, and partnering with Nokia to achieve success ...
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Nokia unveils Windows Phone 8 devices with NFC
NFC World
Support for NFC within a number of Windows Phone 8 apps has also been announced. The Vimeo app for WP8 will allow users to share videos using NFC, the YouSendIt app provides the ability to share files using NFC and the Michelin Guide app will enable ...
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NFC World

Stollman looks to integrate smart phones with cars via NFC
NFCNews
NFC software solutions provider Stollman announced a partnership with Philips & Lite-On Digital Solutions, an automotive infotainment company, and Funkwerk Dabendorf, a mobile communication solutions provider for the automotive industry, to enable the ...
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Forbes: Quick comment: NFC, Wireless Charging The Winners At Nokia Launch?

ePaymentNews

2 new results for NFC Mobile Payment

Quick comment: NFC, Wireless Charging The Winners At Nokia Launch?

Image via CrunchBase

Forbes
Nokia's launch of the Lumia 820 and 920 – in conjunction with Microsoft's promotion of its Windows Phone 8 mobile operating system, has, on first impressions, not done a huge amount for Nokia. At the time of writing, Nokia shares are down nearly 13% in ...
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Forbes

Isis Unveils Mobile Payment System This Month
Vending Times
The joint venture, called Isis, offers a near-field communications (NFC) platform that allows users to make purchases with their smartphones. T-Mobile plans to use the technology to enable its customers to download applications and content by tapping ...
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Introducing PaidThx! a New Social Payment Network Founded in Virginia

For Immediate Release

NEW SOCIAL PAYMENT NETWORK FOUNDED IN VIRGINIA

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA (September 6, 2012) -- A group of five Richmond, VA-based entrepreneurs have founded a new social payment network called PaidThx. The founders include Thomas Eide (CEO), Rob Kirchner (COO), James Rhodes (CTO), Hugo Camacho (Executive Director of Finance) and Ryan Ricigliano (Executive Director of User Experience). The network, which includes Android and iOS smartphone applications, will be launching to the public later this year. With PaidThx, users will no longer have to carry around cash or a checkbook -- just their smartphone.

PaidThx is the first social payment network, and allows its users to transfer money with friends, family, and their favorite organizations quickly and easily. The new technology works similarly to online banking tools that are in the market today with one major difference: PaidThx users can send and receive money with all of their contacts, no matter where they bank. The network can be accessed from a smartphone, computer, or popular social media sites. Not only is PaidThx great for making everyday payments, but it can also be used for donations to charities and non-profit organizations.

Interested users can enter their e-mail address at "http://www.paidthx.com/" to claim their PaidThx invite and be among the first to start using the new social payment network.

PaidThx is also on Facebook "https://www.facebook.com/PaidThx" and

Twitter ("https://twitter.com/#!/paidthx"

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Apple Shoplifting Arrest Puts Heat on Mobile Checkout Policies

Apple Arrest Puts Heat On Mobile Checkout Policies

StoreFrontBackTalk

Written by Evan Schuman

Do the very nature of mobile checkout apps mean that retailers must radically rethink shoplifting policies? (Hint: The answer is "yes.") After Apple literally sent an 18-year-old Apple Store customer to jail in New York City last month—after the customer apparently failed to click the final complete transaction button—the broader implications for retailers are significant. Shoplifting policies are based on a simply binary: Is the customer leaving the store with an unpaid-for product? But there needs to be proof of intent. And for the next year or two—while consumer-controlled mobile in-store purchases are very new—there had better be overwhelming proof of that intent.

What should be the policy if the customer absentmindedly—or sloppily or in haste—forgets to click an icon? Even more frightening, what if the shopper does properly process the transaction on his/her mobile phone but the application or the transmission glitches, for whatever reason?

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Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Safeway plans IPO of Blackhawk gift-card business

Blackhawk Network (Photo credit: SRivera)

Safeway plans to take gift card business Blackhawk Network public next year

PLEASANTON, Calif. (AP) -- Safeway Inc. said Wednesday that it plans to take its gift card business, Blackhawk Network Holdings Inc., public by the first half of 2013. The supermarket chain said it plans to file a registration statement for the public offering of a minority stake in Blackhawk. The exact timing of the IPO depends on market conditions. The company gave no details on pricing.

read more

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Economic Confidence Declines in August, According to the Discover U.S. Spending MonitorSM

Image via CrunchBase

September 05, 2012 07:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

Economic Outlook and Higher Household Spending Drives Index to Lowest Level in 2012

RIVERWOODS, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Economic concerns and anticipation of continued higher expenses pushed the Discover U.S. Spending Monitor to its lowest level of the year in August, declining 0.7 points from July to 88.6. The Monitor is a 5-year-old daily poll tracking economic confidence and spending intentions of nearly 8,200 consumers throughout the month. August marked the third consecutive monthly increase for those believing the economy is getting worse.

Highlights of Discover U.S. Spending Monitor Results

June July August

2012 2012 2012

Discover U.S. Spending Monitor Index 90.7 89.3 88.6

U.S. Economy Improving 29% 28% 26%

Personal Finances Improving 23% 23% 20%

Economic Rating at 9-Month Low

While the number of respondents reporting the U.S. economy as poor leveled out from June to July, 56 percent of respondents ranked the economy as poor in August. This was the highest level since January 2012.

Respondents with children who view the economy as poor increased 7 percentage points from July to August to 58 percent. Respondents without children viewing the economy as poor remained unchanged at 54 percent.

There was an 8-percentage point increase to 50 percent in the number of consumers making $75,000 or more viewing the economy as poor. This compared with little change for those making between $40,000 and $75,000, poor rating declined 1 percentage point to 53 percent, and those making less than $40,000, poor rating increased 1 percentage point to 62 percent.

Respondents believing the economy is getting worse increased for the third straight month to 55 percent, up 2 percentage points from July and 11 points from March 2012.

In August, 54 percent of women believed the economy was getting worse, an increase of 4 percentage points from the previous month, while 56 percent of men had the same belief, a decline of 1 percentage point.

Consumers Believing Their Personal Finances are Getting Worse Reaches 10-Month High

Fifty-one percent believe their personal finances are getting worse, an increase of 2 percentage points from the previous month. This is the highest level since October 2011 when 55 percent of respondents felt their personal finances were getting worse.

However, there was little change in how respondents currently rate their personal finances in August, with 34 percent rating their personal finances as good or excellent, equal to July, 38 percent rating them as fair, down 1 percentage point from July, and 25 percent rating them as poor, also equal to July.

High Food and Gas Prices May be Affecting Discretionary Spending Intentions

Of all respondents, 31 percent plan to spend more next month (an increase of 4 percentage points from the prior month). This is the highest number reported for August since 2008 and may reflect steadily rising food prices and record-high national average gas prices during the month.

For all respondents, 44 percent expect to spend more on household expenses such as gas and groceries in the next month, an increase of 6 percentage points from July and the highest number reported for August since 2008.

49 percent plan to spend less on going out to dinner or the movies in the month ahead, an eight-month high and up 2 percentage points from July.

48 percent plan on spending less on home improvement purchases, up 1 point from July.

46 percent plan on spending less on a major purchase such as a vacation, a 2-point increase from July.

Consumers were asked for the first time in August how much they plan to spend on back-to-school shopping, with nearly two-thirds indicating they plan to spend less than $250 this year. Specifically, 35 percent plan to spend less than $100, and 30 percent plan to spend between $100 and $250.

Compared to last year, 38 percent plan to spend the same on back-to-school shopping. Thirty-two percent plan to spend less than they did a year ago, and 29 percent plan to spend more.

About Discover U.S. Spending Monitor

The Discover U.S. Spending Monitor^SMis a monthly index of consumer spending intentions and capacity that is based on interviews with a random sample of 8,200 U.S. adults conducted at a rate of 275 per night. In addition to spending, the survey asks consumers their opinions on the U.S. economy and their personal finances. The Monitor began in May 2007 with a base index of 100. Surveys are conducted by Rasmussen Reports, an independent survey research firm (http://www.rasmussenreports.com).

About Discover

Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) is a direct banking and payment services company with one of the most recognized brands in U.S. financial services. Since its inception in 1986, the company has become one of the largest card issuers in the United States. The company operates the Discover card, America's cash rewards pioneer, and offers home loans, private student loans, personal loans, online savings accounts, certificates of deposit and money market accounts through its direct banking business. Its payment businesses consist of Discover Network, with millions of merchant and cash access locations; PULSE, one of the nation's leading ATM/debit networks; and Diners Club International, a global payments network with acceptance in more than 185 countries and territories. For more information, visit www.discoverfinancial.com.

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mopay Study Reveals Consumers’ Spending Behavior Via Direct Carrier Billing

Results based on more than four-million transactions reveal that more than 50 percent of direct to carrier billing purchases were made by returning customers

MUNICH & PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--mopay, a global leader in innovative payment solutions for online merchants, today announced the results of a customer study on consumers’ spending behavior using direct carrier billing. The study captures mobile transaction behavior for more than 300 mopay clients, based on a database of more than four-million transactions in over 80 countries, over the last three years. The results found that more than 50 percent of direct-to-carrier billing purchases were made by returning customers and revealed new findings about purchases made in the gaming and online dating industries.

“Based on our data it’s clear that consumers are embracing direct-to-carrier billing as a way to make payments quickly and easily for the online services they use every day”

The study showed that mobile merchants found direct-to-carrier billing very convenient for their customers, as purchasing processes could be easily completed on the mobile phone itself. Within three years, mobile payments traffic from direct-to-carrier billing grew by a factor of almost four-fold. Repeat users demonstrate that once consumers experience the ease and speed of mobile payments, they often select the method again for future purchases:

With high conversion rates compared to other payment methods, mopay converts between 52 and 63 percent of all first-time customers within a six-month timeframe.

mopay converted between 70 and 85 percent of its repeat users.

Overall, 55 percent of returning consumers completed more than five purchases using mobile payments.

Over the course of the last three years, every one of mopay’s major mobile payments’ industries saw an increase in spending averages. The data also showed that spending averages differ significantly from industry to industry, ranging from below $2 USD for various mobile related services, to up to $10 USD and above for special interest social networking or entertainment offers.

“Based on our data it’s clear that consumers are embracing direct-to-carrier billing as a way to make payments quickly and easily for the online services they use every day,” said Kolja Reiss, managing director at mopay. “Our data shows that half of direct-to-carrier billing purchases were made by returning customers. This indicates that once consumers try our payment approach, they realize just how easy it is to use and continue to use the payment method. As more organizations adopt direct-to-carrier billing and consumers realize this option exists, we anticipate these numbers will continue to rise in the future.”

The study also revealed trends in two key industries:

Gaming & Social Networks: Since online gaming was the industry that first discovered mobile payments as a fast, effective and easy payment method for its users, it was no surprise that mobile payments’ traffic in online gaming is still high, accounting for more than half of mobile payments’ turnover and growing at a rate of almost 30 percent year-to-year. As social networks establish themselves not only as communication channels but gaming platforms, mobile payments in this industry increased by six fold in turnover within three years and now contributes to over five percent of all mobile payments’ transactions. Over the course of the last three years, every one of the major mobile payments’ industries saw an increase in spending average. From slight increases in online gaming (around 10 percent) and leveling off at around $4.50 USD, to drastic increases in social communities of almost 40 percent, passing $5 USD in 2011.

Online Dating: A solid showing over the last three years was made in online dating with direct-to-carrier billing spending ranking among the top-five industries with more than $6.50 USD and growing by 25 percent.

About mopay:

mopay is a global leader in innovative payment solutions for online merchants. mopay’s core platform enables merchants of virtual, digital and physical goods to bill charges directly to consumers’ cell phone and land line accounts. mopay operates in more than 80 countries across the globe, reaching more than 4.3 billion consumers. The company has a blue-chip customer base including major brands such as Bigpoint, Gameforge, Innogames, Sulake and Travian. mopay, part of the MindMatics group, has more than 100 employees at locations in the United States, Germany, Austria, the United Kingdom, China, Brazil, and Romania. For more information, visit www.mopay.com.

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Acculynk Announces Acquisition of PayLeap Gateway and Merchant Services

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September 05, 2012 08:17 AM Eastern Daylight Time

Acculynk Announces Acquisition of PayLeap Gateway and Merchant Services

Acquisition Brings a Debit Focus to Small e-Commerce Merchants Providing a Comprehensive Solution for Gateway Services, Fraud Tools, and Credit Card + Internet Pin Debit Processing

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Atlanta-based Acculynk announced today it has acquired PayLeap, an industry leading e-commerce payment gateway platform and merchant services ISO, to form Acculynk Direct, a new operating division of Acculynk.

Widespread adoption of Internet PIN debit through Acculynk’s PaySecure® online PIN pad, along with increasing use of PIN debit by consumers, paves the way for the launch of Acculynk Direct, the industry’s first acquirer with the ability to offer Internet PIN debit to small and mid-market merchants. Currently over 3,200 online merchants, including large e-commerce retailers and most major airlines, provide Acculynk’s Internet PIN debit as an online payment method to their customers. PIN debit benefits merchants by shifting the liability for fraud from the merchant to the card issuer. Acculynk’s patented PaySecure online PIN pad is the industry standard for accepting PIN debit transactions over the web.

As a result of the acquisition, Acculynk Direct will provide full service payment processing and payment gateway solutions to small and mid-size merchants, and a full affiliate program to partners and resellers. Additionally, Acculynk Direct plans to provide a full suite of developer-oriented tools to provide simple integration of the service into mobile merchant applications and e-commerce sites.

“We see tremendous value in combining PayLeap’s success as a full service gateway and payments processor with Acculynk’s success bringing PIN debit to e-commerce. There is a need in the industry for an Acquirer, like Acculynk Direct, with the ability to help small and medium-size merchants more aggressively manage their payment mix by leveraging the benefits of debit that lower acceptance costs and reduce risk,” said Ashish Bahl, CEO Acculynk. “Together we will build an industry-leading service that provides innovative technology with state-of-the-art integration tools to web and mobile developers. This approach further complements Acculynk’s strategy of working with the large acquirers to board large national and global merchants.”

PayLeap is a secure, single-source solution which supports electronic payment acceptance for online and retail merchants. PayLeap functionality includes fraud management tools, tokenized cardholder data vault, hosted payments page, online secure checkout, recurring payments, and a co-branded virtual terminal. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Warsaw, Indiana, PayLeap serves over 4000 merchant customers and is integrated into over 75 shopping carts and software applications.

“PayLeap clients can continue to expect the level of service and product enhancements we have delivered since our founding. Acculynk greatly strengthens our value proposition to merchants and affiliate partners by adding Internet PIN debit to our already feature-rich set of payment tools,” said Scott Miller, CEO PayLeap. “For the equally important developer community, this represents an opportunity for us to accelerate delivery of API developer tools, such as SDK's for Python, Java, Ruby, .Net and PHP, paired with Java-based wrappers, taking our gateway and service products to the next level in terms of integration simplicity.”

About Acculynk

Acculynk secures online transactions with a suite of software-only services backed by a patented authentication and encryption framework that provides greater security for issuers, EFT networks, merchants and payment processors. Acculynk’s PaySecure® utilizes a graphical PIN-pad for the secure entry of a consumer’s PIN online and is available to merchants through existing acquirer relationships, enabling speedy implementation. PaySecure is currently enabled on over 3,200 merchant websites. Acculynk has partnerships with 11 EFT networks to process PaySecure transactions and with six leading payment processors, and is certified with PULSE, First Data and MasterCard, among other key industry leaders. Visit http://www.acculynk.com.

EMVCo and NFC Forum Announce Collaboration to Optimize NFC Testing Processes

English: Updated font and removed shadow. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

September 05, 2012 06:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

WAKEFIELD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--EMVCo and the NFC Forum have agreed to work together to optimize the development and testing processes of Near Field Communication (NFC)-enabled mobile devices for vendors, through exploring alignment of the two organizations' specifications, and cross-recognition of test results. The alliance will offer significant benefits to stakeholders involved in EMV-related NFC use cases and products in the contactless payments industry by reducing product time-to-market and decreasing certification costs.

“At the NFC Forum, we want to make it fast and affordable for organizations to build and deploy EMV-based NFC solutions. By working closely with EMVCo, we’re able to better support vendors while furthering our commitment to global interoperability.”

EMVCo, the EMV® standards body collectively owned by American Express, JCB, MasterCard and Visa, has signed a Collaboration Agreement with the NFC Forum, a non-profit industry association that advances the use of NFC technology. The goal of the collaboration is to establish a framework to synchronize NFC Forum and EMVCo Specifications, test plans, test tools, laboratory accreditations and the management of contactless product certification. The framework will ultimately streamline the development and testing process of contactless technology for vendors.

Activity will focus on Level 1 functionality, which covers contactless communication protocol. Initial efforts will center on outlining the scope of work and the specifications to be covered. These efforts will be followed by a gap analysis to identify and examine specification differences, agree on specification updates where necessary, and how agreed amendments will be collectively managed.

Joe Cunningham, current Chair of the EMVCo Executive Committee, comments: “To enable contactless to reach its full potential and facilitate the delivery of secure payment solutions, we need to create an efficient testing and certification framework that allows products to be swiftly brought to market. Alignment between industry bodies is therefore essential to ensure we apply specialist knowledge and a cohesive approach to the creation of this very innovative ecosystem. EMVCo recognizes the importance of our work with the NFC Forum and is committed to progressing activity as a priority.”

Koichi Tagawa, NFC Forum Chairman, adds: “At the NFC Forum, we want to make it fast and affordable for organizations to build and deploy EMV-based NFC solutions. By working closely with EMVCo, we’re able to better support vendors while furthering our commitment to global interoperability.”

About EMVCo

EMVCo LLC was formed in February 1999 by Europay, MasterCard and Visa to manage, maintain and enhance the EMV Integrated Circuit Card Specifications for Payment Systems. With the acquisition of Europay by MasterCard in 2002, JCB joining the organisation in 2004 and American Express becoming its fourth member in 2009, EMVCo is currently operated by American Express, JCB, MasterCard and Visa.

EMVCo's primary role is to manage, maintain and enhance the EMV Integrated Circuit Card Specifications to ensure interoperability and acceptance of payment system integrated circuit cards on a worldwide basis.

EMVCo also maintains type approval processes for terminal compliance testing and Common Core Definitions (CCD) and Common Payment Application (CPA) card compliance testing. These testing processes ensure that a single terminal and card approval process is developed at a level that will allow cross payment system interoperability through compliance with the EMV specifications. Additional information can be found at www.emvco.com.

About the NFC Forum

The NFC Forum (http://www.nfc-forum.org) was launched as a non-profit industry association in 2004 by leading mobile communications, semiconductor, and consumer electronics companies. The Forum's mission is to advance the use of Near Field Communication technology by developing specifications, ensuring interoperability among devices and services, and educating the market about NFC technology. The Forum's 170+ global member companies currently are developing specifications for a modular NFC device architecture, and protocols for interoperable data exchange and device-independent service delivery, device discovery, and device capability.

The NFC Forum’s Sponsor members, which hold seats on the Board of Directors, include leading players in key industries around the world. The Sponsor members are: Barclaycard, Broadcom Corporation, INSIDE Secure, Intel, MasterCard Worldwide, NEC, Nokia, NTT DOCOMO, Inc., NXP Semiconductors, Renesas Electronics Corporation, Samsung, Sony Corporation, STMicroelectronics, and Visa Inc.

®EMV is a registered trademark in the U.S. and other countries and an unregistered trademark elsewhere. The EMV trademark is owned by EMVCo.

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Highlights of Discover U.S. Spending Monitor Results
	June	July	August
	2012	2012	2012
Discover U.S. Spending Monitor Index	90.7	89.3	88.6
U.S. Economy Improving	29%	28%	26%
Personal Finances Improving	23%	23%	20%

Thursday, September 6, 2012

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Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Safeway plans to take gift card business Blackhawk Network public next year

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Results based on more than four-million transactions reveal that more than 50 percent of direct to carrier billing purchases were made by returning customers

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Acculynk Announces Acquisition of PayLeap Gateway and Merchant Services

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