In the week when Google, Apple and Nokia all announce their profits, the headlines will be dominated by the impact of mobile business
Telcos are becoming increasingly reliant on the take-up of smartphones as an essential route to market. Although ownership of smartphones has increased over recent years, telcos are seeking ways of boosting this figure among business users and increasing the services they can provide through smartphones.
mPowa, the global innovators in mobile payments, is reacting to growing demand from telcos around the world to help them to roll out mobile payment solutions to business users through its white label solution. By offering its services in this way, mPowa is helping telcos to offer a payment service that maintains their branding but has the patented functionality that mPowa offers.
mPowa’s payment system works by inserting a credit card into a compact card reader, which then communicates with a mobile device via Bluetooth, enabling merchants to accept payments on the move. This type of service will boost productivity and convenience for businesses and also help to increase take up of smartphones created by the likes of Google, Apple and Nokia.
mPowa is currently in advanced talks with a number of blue chip companies within telecoms globally, as well as banks and retailers, with a view to securing major deals in the near future. The company signed a major deal last year to supply its devices and payment infrastructure to First National Bank in South Africa.
Dan Wagner, founder and CEO of mPowa said, “It is incredibly competitive at the moment within the mobile sector and in order for telcos to gain market share, they are diversifying their businesses and offering new services. By doing so, they are able to deliver convergence and drive customer retention, particularly among business users.
“It was important for us to tailor our offering for telcos by presenting them with a compelling case as they look to maximise take-up of their services. We therefore aligned our service with their business goals. Smartphone ownership has increased exponentially over the last couple of years but there is still huge potential for growth.”
Dan concluded, “mPowa is a service that is specifically aimed at the users of smartphones and as a result, we will help telcos to generate growth in this area, especially as they aim to drive the usage of mobile data. And with SMEs among their customer base, many will be empowered to accept credit card payments on the move for the first time.”
About mPowa (www.mpowa.com)
mPowa is a point of sale device that enables credit and debit card payments to be made on the go. It consists of a mobile phone app for iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows or Blackberry devices, and a card reader. The reader is a Chip & PIN device which connects to the mobile device via Bluetooth. It is the first service of its kind in the UK.
mPowa was created by multi award-winning serial entrepreneur Dan Wagner. Dan set up mPowa as the mobile off-shoot of his ecommerce and web publishing platform for small businesses called Powa Technologies. Previously, he established Venda – the world’s largest ‘on demand’ ecommerce provider – and Locayta – sophisticated search and profiling technology – both are now global leaders in their fields. Dan has been described by the Financial Times as a ‘lone ranger with a mass target’.