Visa Launches Mobile Payment Platform

Delivering on its global mobile strategy, Visa launched, on Tuesday, a mobile platform that lays the foundation for the commercial availability of mobile payments and services to millions of mobile users around the world. The new platform is expected to foster greater collaboration between the financial services and mobile telecommunications sectors for the delivery of mobile payment applications and payment related services.

“Visa has long realized the importance of the mobile channel to the future of payments and as a medium to deliver consumer services,” said Gordon Cooper, Regional Head of Mobile Payment, Visa International Asia Pacific. “The launch of the mobile platform is a significant industry milestone because it will enable innovative trials and go-to-market strategies for mobile payment services globally.”

The platform is a comprehensive suite of technology tools and applications, security standards, and business models that will enable issuers and mobile operators to engage in market trials to drive product development and commercialization of mobile payment services.  Informed by years of experience in the mobile payments market and developed in partnership with mobile technology companies, including handset manufacturers, chip suppliers, mobile applications developers, over-the-air (OTA) service providers and mobile messaging providers, the platform is both flexible and complementary to existing technologies so that it can seamlessly integrate with global wireless technology and payments infrastructures.

The platform makes it easier for Visa issuers, mobile operators and technology providers to deliver an intuitive and integrated consumer experience across a range of compelling services such as mobile contactless payments including mobile Visa Wave, remote payments, person-to-person payments, and mobile coupons, as well as account management services that enable consumers to better monitor account activity and manage their funds.

Asia Pacific has played an active role in Visa’s mobile payment platform development. Much of Visa’s experience in mobile commerce in the past five years has come from innovative projects it has developed in markets including Malaysia, Korea and Japan. In April 2006, Visa  in Malaysia introduced the region’s first EMV-based mobile contactless payment pilot program. The mobile Visa Wave pilot, which followed another large-scale trial in the US, combined Near Field Communications (NFC) with Visa's contactless EMV payment technology (Visa Wave), allowing users to make secure payments using their mobile phones. Visa partnered with Maybank, Maxis Communications, Nokia and ViVOtech in Malaysia.

According to Maxis Head of Products and New Businesses, Dr Nikolai Dobberstein, the Malaysia pilot showcased the potential of turning mobile phones into electronic wallets, “We anticipate that mobile payments, a reality now in several countries, will provide our customers  with the added ease and convenience to pay wherever they go.”

Korea’s mobile-based Visa payment services have been in place since 2002 with SK Telecom. SK Telecom General Manager Seung-Jin Choi said, “The convergence of payment services with mobile phones is happening and we are expanding our services to offer not only voice/mail but also payment, mass transit and mobile banking to our mainstream customers. We believe our partnership with Visa will facilitate the global expansion of mobile payment services and we plan to introduce innovative mobile payment services in the market.”

Other operators have also joined Visa’s mobile payment projects in Korea, including LG Telecom which launched Korea's first Visa Wave payment service in 2006 on mobile phones in partnership with Tesco across all of its 66 locations.

This year, Taiwan is predicted to be a hot spot for mobile payment innovation. Commenting on the prospects for mobile payment in Taiwan and the relevance of the Visa mobile platform, Chunghwa Telecom Mobile Business Group Deputy Managing Director Hsueh-Hai Hu said, “Taiwanese consumers see the potential of the mobile phone and its capabilities for performing functions beyond voice and data communications. Chunghwa Telecom is committed to delivering value-added services to its customers including mass transit ticketing and mobile payment services, which will be delivered through a mobile handset enabled for NFC. We believe the Visa mobile platform provides many of the necessary building blocks to make mobile payment a reality.”

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