If you thought you went through money quickly before, try the Zoompass Tag
Gillian Shaw
Sun
Mobile money has just been given a new boost with EnStream LP’s Zoompass Tag, which lets consumers use their mobile phones as a virtual credit or debit card.
Canada‘s major wireless carriers have announced a new mobile money system that can turn your cellphone into a wireless payment machine.
EnStream LP, a joint venture of Bell Mobility, Rogers and Telus, launched a three-month pilot project for the Zoompass Tag, a sticker that converts your mobile phone into a virtual credit or debit card when it’s swiped across a point-of-sale terminal at a checkout.
It’s a little like having a prepaid coffee or gas card. Order up a coffee or fill the tank, swipe your phone and it’s paid.
The new payment system follows up on Zoompass, EnStream’s first mobile application, which was launched last year, allowing Canadians to use mobile phones to exchange money with friends and family.
“The service type environments are the ones that benefit the most,” Christian Ali, EnStream vice-president, product development, said of the new Zoompass Tag.
“You get your coffee, you tap for payment and it’s completely done within literally two or three seconds or less. It’s really all about convenience.”
The phone sticker works with a con-tactless point-of-sale reader such as a PayPass and users can see transactions logged immediately. And they can track their transaction history on their phone.
You can use the Zoompass tag to pay where there are PayPass readers, at such outlets as Tim Horton’s, Petro-Canada, McDonald’s, Superstore and other retailers.
The current Zoompass Tag trial has about 200 participants and Ali said consumers can sign up on the website, www.zoompass.com,to participate in future trials.
Does this mean that losing your cellphone is the same as losing as your wallet? No, according to EnStream, which says customers’ financial information is stored on secure servers and not on the mobile phone. Ali said the Zoomtag can be deactivated if a phone is lost or stolen and consumers are protected from liability.
“Because it is a MasterCard product, there is zero liability,” he said. “Customers are never responsible if their card or tag is compromised.”
The Zoompass tag is linked to the Zoompass prepaid MasterCard, and the Zoompass account of the user. The user can set limits on the amount of money available for the tag, just like loading up a coffee card for future purchases.
Ali said the service is popular with parents who want to give money to their children who are travelling or away at university, giving them a way to put a limit on spending and track it at the same time.
While the Zoompass Tag can be used only in Canada, the Zoompass MasterCard can be used anywhere in the world where MasterCard is accepted.
© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun
