Mobile banking and payments trial gives Discover
Cardmembers a convenient and easy way to make purchases and manage their credit
card accounts in real time via Motorola mobile phones
Riverwoods and Schaumburg, IL -- February 13, 2007 -- Discover Financial
Services, a business unit of Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), and Motorola, Inc.
(NYSE: MOT), today announced the launch of a mobile payments and account
management trial that enables participants to check their Discover Card account
balances, review payment history, and make purchases using their mobile phones
in place of a traditional plastic credit card.
The pilot project is being conducted by Discover Network, a division of
Discover Financial Services, and Motorola, and involves up to 1,000
participants with Discover Card accounts and multiple merchants in the Chicago
and Salt Lake City areas. The pilot uses Motorola phones and its “M-Wallet”
software, with Motorola’s system integration and hosting services enabling the
solution. It is designed to test the entire infrastructure associated with
accessing real time account information over the air, as well as the use of
near field communications (NFC) technology, which is required for consumers to
make payments using their cellular devices.
“Not only will this pilot give us feedback on the technology, but also it will
provide valuable information about how merchants and Cardmembers interface with
it,” said Joby Orlowsky, vice president of marketing for Discover Network.
“This ensures that we deliver a customer experience that is seamless and
relevant, and that meets their expectations every step of the way.”
Discover Network’s contactless platform, combined with Motorola’s “M-Wallet”
software solution, allows cardholders to download any of their Discover Card
accounts to their cellular device. Once the software is downloaded,
participants can check credit card balances, review payment history, and
receive statements and rewards information.
The Motorola M-Wallet solution enables high-speed, secure financial
transactions via NFC mobile phones in CDMA and GSM technologies. Key solution
features include an easy to use “virtual wallet” interface and the flexibility
to accommodate a variety of functions, such as bill payments, mobile banking,
couponing, person-to-person transactions, stored value cards, ticketing, and
point of sale transactions. As part of the Motorola Global Applications
Management (GAMA) framework, M-Wallet is device agnostic, interoperable with a
mobile network operators’ applications environment, and offered in a hosted
business model.
“The Motorola M-Wallet solution creates value for financial institutions and
retailers by streamlining electronic transactions and optimising the customer
management processes,” said Navin Mehta, vice president, Services, Motorola
Networks & Enterprise. “For the end-user, Discover Network’s innovative
platform combined with M-Wallet’s flexible end-to-end infrastructure result in a
reliable and easy to use experience. Mobile network operators also benefit from
the solution, providing an added opportunity to increase traction with their
subscribers by simplifying their day-to-day tasks.”
This mobile payments trial is the latest initiative in Discover Network’s
contactless payment program. Contactless payment technology is gaining consumer
acceptance and offers value to merchants who are searching for innovative ways
to improve customer service and transaction volume, and drive customer loyalty.
According to a recent study by the Aberdeen Group, more than 58 percent of
retail respondents in the survey indicated that they plan to implement
contactless payment solutions within the next 18-24 months.
NFC is a new, short-range wireless connectivity technology that evolved from a
combination of existing contactless identification and interconnection
technologies. Products with built-in NFC will dramatically simplify the way
consumer devices interact with one another, helping people speed connections,
receive and share information and make fast and convenient payments.
Discover Network’s contactless payment solutions will help drive merchant
transaction volume and customer loyalty by enabling them to offer their
customers a faster, safer and more convenient way to pay for purchases.
Discover Network cardholders with this technology can complete transactions at
the point of sale by simply waving or holding their Discover Network
contactless payment device in front of a radio frequency (RF) reader.
About Discover Financial Services
Discover Financial Services LLC, a business unit of Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS),
operates the Discover Card with more than 50 million Cardmembers, and the
Discover Network, with more than 4 million merchant and cash access locations.
Discover Financial Services also operates the PULSE ATM/debit network, which
serves more than 4,200 financial institutions and includes nearly 250,000 ATMs
and approximately 3.4 million POS terminals. For more information, visit www.discovercard.com,
www.discovernetwork.com or www.pulse-eft.com.
Source: Motorola press release
