Ericsson helps implement mobile ticketing service in Florence (Italy)
Azienda Trasporti dell’Area Fiorentina (ATAF, the public transport authority in Florence, Italy) has launched its Mobile Ticketing service in partnership with Ericsson and mobile operators TIM, Vodafone, Wind and 3 Italia. As per a report by the company, the service allows customers of these operators to buy public transport tickets by text message, charging the cost to their mobile account.
Through this initiative, the Italian operators are strengthening their commitment to Mobile Pay, a platform launched in May 2011 to expand the use of mobile technology as a payment method. ATAF is the first public transport administration in Italy to implement mobile payment services. The system is convenient for passengers because a mobile phone is all they need to make a payment, and the cost is charged to their existing mobile account, so no registration or credit system is necessary.
Mobile ticketing represents a new step toward the mass adoption of m-commerce, a concept that transforms mobile devices into mobile wallets to provide a new method of payment for goods and services. In a study on preferred mobile services conducted by the Politecnico di Milano (Polytechnic University of Milan) in Italy, 65 percent of respondents said they were interested in mobile ticketing.
Ericsson is the world leader in mobile charging and billing, with more than 1.6 billion subscribers using its solutions. Prior to the 2012 Mobile World Congress, held in Barcelona, Spain, Ericsson launched its new extended suite of m-commerce solutions and services, designed to accelerate access and interconnection between the emerging m-commerce ecosystem and the financial world to fast-track the next generation of mobile financial services.
Alacatel-Lucent to provide BSS solution to Morocco’s Maroc Telecom
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Maroc Telecom, a global fixed, mobile and internet telecommunication operator in the Kingdom of Morocco, has chosen Alcatel-Lucent as its billing and customer care system integrator. As per the deal, Alcatel-Lucent will evolve Maroc’s mobile billing platforms towards a new fully converged and integrated version.
Alacatel-Lucent’s solution that combines customer care, rating and billing and network integration services will help Maroc to offer flexible, high-quality, value-added services to its mobile customers. Through this contract, Alcatel-Lucent has confirmed its leadership in business support system (BSS) solutions, including software and integration services.
According to Abdel Mounim Ghetreff, Head of Alcatel-Lucent’s business in Morocco, the deal establish relationship between Alcatel-Lucent and Maroc Telecom and will enable Maroc Telecom to propose more personalized billing and support services to its customers. It will also improve revenue collection and leakage prevention.
Tanla Mobile launches integrated payment system
Mobile marketing firm Mobizar has rebranded under the name Tanla mobile, launching a new mobile billing service in the process.
The name change is designed to better reflect its relationship with its parent company, Indian telecom provider Tanla Solutions. Tanla Mobile provides mobile solutions for clients to communicate with their customers.
To coincide with the rebranding, Tanla has announced its successful accreditation from Orange, T-Mobile and Vodafone for a new UK ‘PayForIt’ scheme.
PayForIt is designed to make mobile billing simple, secure and transparent for users.
It is the result of a strategic UK cross-mobile network operator initiative to create a trusted environment in which mobile phone users can buy goods and services on the mobile internet and charge the cost to their mobile phone.
PayForIt protects consumers by using a trusted intermediary, known as an accredited payment intermediary, to handle interactions with the customer regarding purchases rather than the content providers themselves.
Gautam Sabharwal, Director of Global Business development, Tanla Mobile, said: In the past year, there have been several cases where mobile content providers have been judged to have exploited the current system to unfairly bill their customers. In order to continue to grow the mobile content market, we need to ensure people feel comfortable and secure in that environment. Our PayForIt accreditation is a significant step in that direction.???
