Wireless Point of Sale (POS) terminals set to expand markets with poor infrastructure
Dubai - Visa International CEMEA's (Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa) Head of Chip, Sergey Yelutin, is to demonstrate the latest capabilities of wireless POS technology at the forthcoming Channels Global Banking Strategy Summit during a speaking session on 8 February 2005. The demonstration will show how wireless terminals can enable POS acceptance in markets that are constrained either by the lack of a landline infrastructure or the mobility requirements of its vendors.
"For many years the only alternative to a landline attached POS terminal was a manual embossing machine. Embossing machines have been an important part of the Visa acceptance network, enabling Visa cards to be widely accepted, but they are less efficient than POS terminals, and they can be less secure. Furthermore they cannot be used with Visa Electron cards, of which there are many in the CEMEA region," said Yelutin. "So, where there are no landlines or poor landline infrastructure, a different form of connectivity is required to enable electronic POS terminals to reach the acquirer or processor host."
Over the last ten years there has been a global explosion in the number of mobile phones deployed. This growth has not been restricted to the wealthy G8 countries, but has also occurred in the developing world. Wireless communication masts have been built in both urban and rural areas, allowing mobile phones to work in places that have no, or unreliable, landlines. Electronic POS terminals with a wireless communications device embedded, or externally connected, can use these masts just as effectively as mobile phones.
Visa CEMEA has worked with vendors to develop a cost-effective array of solutions that can be used in varying scenarios where wireless connectivity is needed. These solutions fall into four categories:
Individual wireless POS terminals for a small stores
Small wireless connection modules to handle up to 3 devices at ATM or POS installations
Higher capacity wireless connection modules for large merchants with up to 50 devices (e.g. checkouts or tills)
Truly mobile wireless POS terminals that can be used for truck deliveries, tradesmen, taxis, etc.
All these solutions utilise the innovation of having more than one SIM card in the device. The first three wireless devices use the extra SIM to allow a choice of wireless networks. The saturation of a network can vary second to second, and by selecting the strongest network the chance of failure to connect to the host system is greatly reduced. The mobile wireless POS terminal on the other hand uses one SIM card for GSM telephony and the second to allow processing on a mobile handset.
Results from the recent 'proof of concept' trials in Russia have been very exciting. Terminals were deployed in restaurants, boutiques and supermarkets and connected to their acquirer hosts using the GPRS services from two mobile phone companies, the key statistics over the 3-month trial period were:
Network transmission success rate was better than 98%
The average transmission time for a transaction was 6 seconds
The average communication cost per transaction was $USD0.004, that is less than half a US cent. Visa International is the headline sponsor of the Channels Global Banking Strategy Summit which will be held at the JW Marriott Hotel, Dubai February 6-9th, 2005. Visa will have a fully-interactive, staffed exhibition stand demonstrating E-Commerce, M-Commerce and Chip Technology solutions during the event.
-Ends-
About Visa
Visa is the world's leading payment brand generating nearly US$3 trillion in annual card sales volume. Visa has unsurpassed acceptance in more than 150 countries. The Visa organisation plays a pivotal role in developing innovative payment products and technologies to benefit its 21,000 member financial institutions and their cardholders. Visa is a leader in Internet based payments and is pioneering the creation of u-commerce, or universal commerce--the ability to conduct commerce anywhere, anytime, and any way.
Visa International is committed to working with governments, regulators and its member banks to support the development of a cashless society. Electronic payments such as Visa card payments support economic growth through increased banking deposits, which provide additional funds for commercial loans - the lifeblood of a growing economy - bringing benefits to consumers, merchants, the banking sector and the economy.
For more information:
Fakher Daghestani / Sudha Hemmad
ASDA'A Public Relations
Dubai
UAE
Tel: + 9714 3344550
Fax: + 9714 3344556
f.daghestani@asdaa.com
s.hemmad@asdaa.com
www.corporate.visa.com
Clare Woodcraft
Visa International
UAE
Tel: +9714 3319690
Fax: +9714 3322199
woodcrac@visa.com
© Press Release 2005
