Vodafone Ghana & Afric Xpress to launch txtnpay services

On 02.19.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The subscribers of Vodafone Ghana will now be able to buy air time and top up their credit, with a simple click on the phone. This innovatively new service will be rolled out by the telecom operator in partnership with Afric Xpress.

Airtime for transactions such as pay utility bills at SMS charges could also be used by the subscribers through this service by registering at a txtnpay centre dotted across the country.

According to Chief Executive of Afric Xpress Mr Nvalaye Kourouma, the service offers a secured platform that brings innovation in customer service and the first of series of innovations that would be introduced onto the market.

A New York based electronic payment solution provider Afric Xpress focuses on mobile payments and it is currently looking at fostering electronic based markets in Africa by turning mobile phones into commercial platform, empowering customers with security, speed and convenience.

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Nokia Money due to launch soon

On 11.12.09, In Mobile, By Editor
Nokia is attempting to create a multi-bank, multi-operator and multi-device collaboration on mobile banking.
Nokia’s mobile banking and payment service is expected to be commercially available in its first market in Q1 2010, though no location details have been revealed yet.
According to Teppo Paavola, vice president, GM mobile financial services, Nokia cannot reveal any details until a banking partner is confirmed. It is learnt that the service requires a banking license before it can be launched.
Nokia said its target is to have 300 million active users of its services by the end of 2011; the number is expected to be 80 million by the end of 2009.
Paavola said the service will enable un-banked people in emerging markets to transfer money, top up prepaid mobile services, pay bills, carry out online transactions, and pay merchants.
Global mobile payments market is expected to be worth €18 billion by 2014 – €12 billion from emerging markets and €6 billion from developed markets.
Approaches to mobile banking so far have lacked scale and have not worked across operators and across banks.
Nokia therefore plans to drive the collaboration on an open financial ecosystem, with Nokia Money at its core. Paavola added that it has taken a long time to get all the players together, from banks through to mobile operators.
The Nokia Money application will not only be pre-loaded but could be sideloaded, or downloaded later.
Nokia will also be able to provide the physical distribution channel that is critical for the service to work. For example, Nokia handset sellers can be turned into Nokia Money agents, providing the devices, the application, and the ability to handle cash.

Nokia is attempting to create a multi-bank, multi-operator and multi-device collaboration on mobile banking, a service dubbed Nokia Money.

Nokia’s mobile banking and payment service is expected to be commercially available in its first market in Q1 2010, though no location details have been revealed yet.

According to Teppo Paavola, vice president, GM mobile financial services, Nokia cannot reveal any details until a banking partner is confirmed. It is learnt that the service requires a banking license before it can be launched.

Nokia said its target is to have 300 million active users of its services by the end of 2011.

Paavola said the service will enable un-banked people in emerging markets to transfer money, top up prepaid mobile services, pay bills, carry out online transactions, and pay merchants.

Global mobile payments market is expected to be worth €18 billion by 2014 – €12 billion from emerging markets and €6 billion from developed markets.

Approaches to mobile banking so far have lacked scale and have not worked across operators and across banks.  Nokia therefore plans to drive the collaboration on an open financial ecosystem, with Nokia Money at its core.

The Nokia Money application will not only be pre-loaded but could be sideloaded, or downloaded later.

Nokia will also be able to provide the physical distribution channel that is critical for the service to work. For example, Nokia handset sellers can be turned into Nokia Money agents, providing the devices, the application, and the ability to handle cash.

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M-Pesa launches in UK (Kenya)

On 10.13.09, In Mobile, By Editor

Vodafone’s group company, Safarikom has launched m-pesa, it’s mobile money transfer and payment service at selected outlets in the UK.

Kenyans in the UK  can now send money to their friends and family in Kenya through M-pesa UK, direct to their mobile phone wallets.

Western Union, Provident Capital Transfers and KenTv were involved in a small pilot before the commercial launch of this service.  A total of 19 outlets with high local kenyan population were selected to trial this service.

To send money using M-PESA, the sender in UK will be required to identify themselves and furnish the agent with the recipient’s name, Kenyan mobile number and the amount being sent in Sterling Pounds. This will be converted at current rates and sent in Kenyan Shillings.  Neither party is charged a registration fee.

A transaction fee ranging from £4 to £6.90 will be charged though.

Following authorisation by the Central Bank of Kenya, Safaricom shall be increasing the locations in the UK from which money can be sent to M-pesa customers as well as launching services across other popular remittance corridors

Currently, the maximum amount that can be sent internationally per transaction through M-pesa is £250 while the total allowable per month from a single sender in the UK is £1,000.

“The successful take-up of M-PESA in Kenya has clearly demonstrated the demand for easily accessible, secure cash payment services in emerging markets,” said Nick Hughes, Vodafone’s Head of International Mobile Payments. “Our partnership with Western Union allows M-PESA subscribers to receive international remittances and builds on the demand we have already seen domestically in Kenya.”

“This program aligns a global leader in money-transfer services, the world’s largest mobile operator group, and arguably one of the most impressive success stories in mobile money,” said Matt Dill, Senior Vice President, Western Union Digital Ventures.  “In offering M-PESA users the opportunity to receive funds from abroad for the first time, these three companies are changing the way money moves around the
globe.”

Safaricom CEO Michael Joseph said: “We wish to invite Kenyans living in the UK to take advantage of this service, which presents a real innovation on our M-pesa menu. Through strategic partnerships with Western Union, Provident Capital and KenTV we are giving them an opportunity to convert across two currencies into M-pesa and send money affordably without any hidden costs – directly to the mobile phone of the recipient.”

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Tele2 Signs Agreement to Offer the Mobispine Agent for Direct Download to Mobile Phone via Their Mobile Portal

On 07.13.07, In Mobile, By Editor

Mobispine AB and Tele2 Sverige AB have signed an agreement to make Mobispine’s intelligent agent for mobile phones available on their mobile portal site (mobil.tele2.se). Tele2 has always strived to offer their Swedish customers the best-priced mobile services in the market, and Mobispine will give them access to over 100,000x feeds and 4 million articles in news & blogs on their mobile phone.

“Mobispine is very proud to offer our service for browsing news & blogs through a major operator such as Tele2,” says Joakim Hilj, CMO. “Tele2 is known for being innovative and its subscriber base will now have extensive access to free news & blogs”.

“We aggregate the web content and information that is being transmitted by RSS feed, to make sure users get fast, cost effective access. Mobispine is free to download, so to start ‘murfing’ (mobile surfing) all users need is a mobile phone that is internet-enabled and accepts Java programs,” says Hilj.

Mobispine allows users to view web content on their mobile phone and to save data-time, this intelligent agent gets updated only when the news article or blog changes. There are in excess of 100,000x feeds being monitored for updates and users can also add new feeds instantly. The unique search function also ensures a quick, effortless experience when exploring all the content on these feeds.

“Linking up with an important operator like Tele2 is important for Mobispine’s goal of reaching 10 million users in the next year,” says Duysant Patel, CEO of Mobispine. “Tele2’s customers can now download the agent directly to their mobile phone via the Tele2 mobile portal and instantly get a high quality news & blog experience on their phone.”

This easy to use application for the mobile phone is planned to have 10 million new phone downloads, especially amongst heavy data users and bloggers who want to keep in touch with their communities when away from their computer.

About Mobispine AB

Mobispine AB is a Stockholm based company founded by Joacim Boivie (CTO) and Joakim Hilj (CMO), in 2004. The CEO is Duysant Patel who has over 15 years experience in the telecom industry. The company develops an intelligent agent used for viewing web content on the mobile phone. This free service has users all over the world and the company is publicly listed in Stockholm.

 

 

 

   

 

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