Barclaycard leads new payment technology
Contactless payments will become part of everyday life, following Barclaycard's commitment to issue at least one million contactless cards to UK consumers before the end of 2008. Since launching contactless payments in September 2007, Barclaycard has led the way in introducing contactless technology, including trialling contactless payments via mobile phone as part of a consumer trial with O2. It now has more than 6,000 live terminals accepting contactless payments throughout the UK. With this growing success Barclaycard expects to see a significant shift to contactless payments across the UK from both retailers and consumers in the next twelve months.
In addition, this week marks the first anniversary of the launch of Barclaycard OnePulse, the UK's first and only openly available contactless payment card.
Well-known names such as Coffee Republic, EAT, The National Trust and Yo! Sushi have joined several thousand independent retailers in signing up to contactless in a drive to provide customers with a fast, simple and secure method of paying. Further big name retailers will be unveiled by Barclaycard in the next few months.
Elizabeth G Chambers, Chief Marketing Officer at Barclaycard said: "Our dominance in the market is evidence of our continuing commitment to innovation, making payments simpler for our customers and, ultimately, changing the way they pay for things. Key to this change is that consumers have a payments provider that they recognise and trust in Barclaycard."
The success of Barclaycard's contactless technology is grounded in the fact that it has the highest market share of contactless terminals live in the UK and it is the only payments business in the UK to have launched a contactless enabled card in the open market, Barclaycard OnePulse. This is a 3 in 1 card featuring Oyster, credit and contactless payment and was introduced in the capital a year ago to help Londoners enjoy a more convenient lifestyle. As well as being a secure Chip and PIN credit card, it has an Oyster function built into it, which can be used in the same way as a traditional Oyster card, and contactless technology, enabling cardholders to make quick and convenient payments for £10 and under in a secure environment, without having to enter a PIN. Barclaycard has also successfully trialled contactless payments via mobile phone to better understand customer behaviour.
Elizabeth G Chambers continued "Retailers and consumers have shown confidence in both our brand and our contactless products and thousands are now experiencing the benefits of this, secure and convenient payment method. Our presence is set to surge with announcements we expect to make in the next few months, and it won't be long before most of Britain is using contactless. Our trial with O2 has shown that consumers are open to the idea of making contactless payments on different types of devices but contactless payments are here and available now for consumers who want them."
To mark the first anniversary and encourage more people to experience and enjoy the benefits of contactless, Barclaycard is taking advantage of its sponsorship of the Mayor's Thames Festival in London on the 13th & 14th September and will be giving away 50,000 single-use contactless cards for visitors to use at the festival. The cards can be used at the Coffee Republic outlet in Jubilee Gardens near London's South Bank, which will have 6 contactless terminals on display. The cards will allow visitors to not only enjoy the benefits of contactless, but a free cup of coffee as well!