SingTel joins NFC payment battlefield
In collaboration with EZ-Link Pte Ltd (EZ-Link), Singapore Telecommunications Ltd (SingTel) has launched a mobile payment services via Near Field Communication (NFC) technology.
The payment service allows SingTel customers who have a supported NFC smartphone and purchase an NFC SIM card to make cashless payments by tapping supported handsets at NFC contactless payment terminals at over 20,000 points island-wide that accept ez-link payment, such as taxis, supermarkets and fast food chains.
There are no additional monthly subscription charges or one-time activation charges for this NFC payment service. As a bonus, customers will enjoy a waiver of the SGD5.00 administrative fee and receive SGD5.00 complimentary stored value in the ez-link purse if they sign up by 30 September 2012. This allows customers to make payments immediately and conveniently at participating retail points that support ez-link payment.
Gan Siok Hoon, SingTel’s Vice President of mCommerce, said this mobile payment service via NFC is the first of many innovative mobile services that SingTel will unveil. They will progressively launch differentiated services that enhance SingTel customers’ lifestyles and provide them with a unique mobile commerce experience, ranging from payments to value-added services, she added.
In recent news, another Singapore Telco, StarHub also launched similar mobile payment service via NFC before SingTel.
by Terry Brown
