With Andersen Consulting’s new prototype technology, you could use cell phones or personal digital assistants to buy a soda from a vending machine, pay for a cab ride, or make purchases at the supermarket or mall, all without plastic or cash. The new technology, called Mobile Micropayments, uses infrared signals for two-way communication between a mobile phone or PDA, and other devices. The prototype uses the existing Qpass technology (commonly used for automatic payment of road tolls) to manage payment and billing, allowing a broad range of price points and flexibility in the method of payment.
If the application is commercialized, it will allow a mobile phone to become an extended wireless terminal. Devices such as cash registers and vending machines will “take over” the phone once in range, and reconfigure the display menu, options, and offerings to enable micro-transactions to take place. An important aspect of the technology is that it doesn’t require a custom application to be loaded on the phone or PDA; the vending machine or cash register handles the processing. The handheld device only authorizes the payment, thus doing away with the burdensome infrastructure usually needed with wireless technology. Emerging short-range radio technologies such as the Bluetooth wireless standard will further broaden the possibilities of this application. For more information, visit the Andersen Consulting Web site at www.ac.com/services.
Based on a report from InformationWeek Daily
