Visa Announces Cellphone Payments

Today (Jan 8, 2007) Visa announced at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas that they were launching a global cellphone payment system.

"The initial version of the platform launched today offers solutions for contactless mobile payment, OTA personalization, coupons and direct marketing. Subsequent versions of the platform, to be made available later in the year, will include solutions for remote payment and person-to-person payment."

So later this year (hopefully) we may see the ability to pay for goods and services off websites simply by using your cell phone.

Visa did an earlier pilot project in Malaysia in April, and by all accounts it was very successful.

"Merchants, noting that consumers are embracing Visa Wave, are very pleased with the faster-moving queues," said Jung. "Cardholders like the high-tech feel of Visa Wave and the fact that it's so easy to use, saving them time and bother from having to search for small change."

Anyone interested in the future of mobile search, and of e-commerce in general in Asia, should find this a very interesting announcement.

Ian