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IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ViVOtech
Partners with Obopay to Broaden NFC Mobile Phone Payment Options
Consumers Can Now Transfer Money (Person-to-Person
Payments) And Make Retail Purchases At Contactless Stations Using
ViVOtech’s Mobile Phone Wallet
SANTA CLARA, California (October 9, 2006) – ViVOtech
Inc., the leading supplier of contactless payment solutions, and
Obopay, the first comprehensive US mobile payment service, have
partnered to allow Obopay users to access the ViVOwallet to conveniently
and securely pay for retail goods by waving their near field communications
(NFC) mobile devices in front of the more than 160,000 retail outlets
equipped with a ViVOtech point-of-sale device.
By
combining ViVOwallet mobile phone software and ViVOplatform Over-The-Air
Provisioning Server Software for NFC Mobile Phones with the Obopay
mobile payment service, customers will be able to access Obopay’s
m-commerce functions - from sharing money with friends and transferring
funds using a mobile device to making physical payments at merchants
sites as well as a host of financial transactions and related services
using the mobile pay service.
“We
are empowering consumers to make payments in the most convenient
way possible,” said Michael Mullagh, CEO, ViVOtech. “Using
ViVOwallet phone software, customers will be able to extend Obopay
to make contactless point-of-sale purchases in a single solution,
thereby arming them with the broadest set of payment options available
on the market today.”
Now
With Obopay, ViVOwallet users can use their mobile phones to make
person-to-person (P2P) payments as well make purchases at physical
stores that are enabled with ViVOtech contactless readers.
“Mobile
phone adoption and evolving mobile user attitudes have combined
in the U.S. to present a colossal, present-day market opportunity,”
said Carol L. Realini, CEO and founder of Obopay. “We are
seeing in the U.S. the same trends that sparked massive adoption
of mobile payments abroad, which makes our partnership with ViVOtech
a very timely and exciting one.”
Using
Obopay mobile payment service, consumers can instantly get, send
and spend money using their mobile handset. Obopay accounts can
be managed completely from the mobile handset, allowing users to
check balances, request payments from other mobile users and view
transaction histories. The service also allows e-commerce sites
to accept payments directly from Obopay accounts, eliminating the
awkward process of inputting credit card information.
The
companies plan to offer ViVOwallet and Obopay as a single integrated
application in 2007, simplifying the person-to-person and traditional
POS payment experience even further. Committed to open standards,
ViVOtech and Obopay are delivering key technologies to drive the
mobile contactless payment industry which, according to a study
published earlier this week from research firm Strategy Analytics,
is poised to reach sales of $36 billion by 2011 at which time 30%
of all mobile phones, i.e., 450 million units, shipped in that year
will be NFC-enabled (ABI Research).
About
ViVOtech
ViVOtech
(www.vivotech.com) is the
market leader in contactless/NFC payment software, transaction management
systems, and readers. These innovative solutions allow consumers
to make contactless payments with radio frequency-enabled credit
cards, debit cards, key fobs, and NFC-enabled mobile phones. ViVOtech's
products are used by some of the most prominent retailers in the
United States. Currently, with more than 200,000 units in 18 countries,
ViVOtech's products are in use at movie theaters, fast food restaurants
(QSR), casual dining establishments, convenience stores, gas stations,
drug stores, grocery stores, buses, taxicabs and vending machine
locations, enabling a wide variety of businesses to accept contactless/NFC
payments. In 2005, ViVOtech received the prestigious Frost &
Sullivan technology award for its role in transforming the contactless
payment industry, as well as winning the first annual ETA Technology
Innovation Award. ViVOtech was recently honored with a MasterCard
"Best Vendor Partner Award" as the first vendor to deliver
stand-alone contactless readers for MasterCard PayPass customers.
About
Obopay
Obopay
is the first complete mobile payment service in the U.S. Obopay’s
intuitive and easy-to-use mobile application is the most convenient
way for consumers to get, send and spend money instantly. The Obopay
team is comprised of executives who have worked previously at Visa
International, Microsoft, AT&T Wireless, Western Union, First
Data Corporation, Norwest Bank and Chordiant Software. Obopay was
founded in 2005 and is based in Redwood City, Calif. For more information,
please visit www.obopay.com.
Editorial
Contact:
Heather Kelly
SSPR
800-287-2279
heather@sspr.com
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