Category: Mobile Payments

BlackBerry may find the success it needs in the mobile commerce space

BlackBerry has been having a difficult time finding traction in a changing business environment recently. The BlackBerry platform has been failing to attract consumers for some time, largely due to the difficulties associated with competing with Android, iOS, and Windows Phone platforms. In order to remain somewhat relevant, BlackBerry has been focusing more heavily on enterprise services, but this has only provided the company with a modest degree of success. Now, BlackBerry is turning to mobile payments in order to stay afloat.

EnStream and BlackBerry will work to promote mobile commerce among mobile consumers and banks

BlackBerry has entered into a three-year partnership with EnStream, a mobile commerce firm. Together, the two organizations will form a joint venture that will focus on providing secure financial services to consumers and banks. These services will primarily deal in the transfer of credit card information from a mobile device. EnStream will be using BlackBerry’s backend infrastructure in order to allow banks and other organizations to conduct NFC-based mobile transactions.

Mobile commerce competition is quite fierce and BlackBerry may not be able to keep up

The mobile commerce space is currently rife with competition and BlackBerry may find it difficult to keep up with an ever evolving market. There are a large number of mobile commerce firms competition with one another for the attention of consumers, and smaller organizations are being pushed out of the market by their larger counterparts. While BlackBerry has won favor within the enterprise sector, whether or not the platform is suitable for mobile commerce is currently unknown. Enterprise clients may not be willing to use BlackBerry for mobile payments, but other consumers may.

Mobile payments may be BlackBerry’s last and best chance to find success

Mobile commerce may be the last chance for BlackBerry to find success. The company has been facing monumental problems that have been very difficult to overcome in recent years. Without finding some sector in which to thrive, BlackBerry may eventually become something of the past, replaced by other platforms that have managed to find more success with consumers.

An Australian financial institution has launched a mobile payments service for consumers.

Bendigo Bank, in partnership with Samsung Electronics Australia and Community Telco Australia, an Adelaide Bank telecommunication subsidiary, has released a retail point of sale (POS) mobile payment solution called “redy”, which gives consumers the capability of making a payment and even donating to a local charity by scanning unique QR codes.

Customers can make payments via their Apple or Android mobile devices.

To make a payment, consumers must first download the redy app, which is required in order to be able to scan the quick response code that is displayed on the Samsung redy tablet located at the POS. Bendigo Bank patrons can connect the redy app directly to their savings account. Those who are not clients of the financial institution can link the app to their MasterCard or Visa account.

To help ensure the security of customers, every QR code is uniquely and automatically generated by Bendigo Bank’s system each time a new transaction is processed. In addition, the receipts from transactions remain on the app, so the customer’s personal data and shopping information is not distributed to the merchant.

Furthermore, redy is not only an efficient shopping service. In addition to enabling customers to make convenient purchases, it also rewards them with “creds”. This is a virtual currency that consumers earn in real time. The value of “creds” received per transaction is half a percent of each transaction. Customers can use this virtual money in more than one way. They can save the currency and use it at a later time to make purchases with businesses that support the redy service. They may also donate “creds” to a local initiative or charity.

QR codes seemed like a more logical solution to NFC Technology.

According to David Joss, CEO of Community Telco Australia, Bendigo Bank chose QR codes over near field communication (NFC) technology or Bluetooth low energy technology due to the fact that QRcodes can be scanned by all mobile devices, which allows more mobile users to benefit from the service. Not every smartphone on the market is equipped with the necessary tech to support NFC or Bluetooth. This makes the app more open.