LEVALLOIS, France & BOSTON--()--Oberthur Technologies, one of the world’s largest providers of security and identification solutions and services based on smart card technologies, in collaboration with its newly acquired mobile payments subsidiary MoreMagic Solutions in Waltham, MA, today announced its selection as the exclusive technology partner of MOBITO, a ground-breaking mobile payment service in the Czech Republic that represents the first of its kind globally. Launched in September by MOPET CZ, a consortium of three of the largest brands in the mobile space – T-Mobile, Telefónica and Vodafone – and four major banks – Česká spořitelna, GE Money Bank, Raiffeisenbank and UniCredit Bank, MOBITO is now available to all mobile users across the Czech Republic regardless of who they bank with.
MOBITO provides people throughout the Czech Republic with a convenient and secure way to make payments from their existing mobile devices, whether they are using feature phones or smartphones. MOBITO customers can access a wide range of services like transportation, ticketing, online purchases and in-store purchases at cafés, bistros, supermarkets, etc. Payments can be made using the MOBITO service, directly from the bank account or through the stored value account (mobile wallet) or even using credit or debit cards. Customers can also use MOBITO to top up their mobile phone credit and send money to each other.
Oberthur Technologies is leveraging the MoreMagic Mobile Money platform and its rich suite of mobile and smartphone applications to deliver a full set of Mobile Financial Services to power MOBITO, paving the way to the adoption of remote payments, as well as NFC and non-NFC proximity payments, across the Czech Republic. The service is fully compliant with EU e-money standards and the Czech Banking laws.
Tomáš Salomon, co-founder and chairman, MOPET CZ commented: “Oberthur Technologies and MoreMagic Solutions have made it possible for us to successfully launch MOBITO in less than twelve months which is a great achievement, especially given the need to fully integrate with seven such large entities, as well as retailers. The service is enabling people across the Czech Republic to experience Mobile Money in an easy-to-use and intuitive way today, without the need to upgrade their mobile phones, change-out their SIM cards or change their bank accounts.”
“MOBITO is a truly unique service and we are excited to be the strategic partner enabling the creation of this universal mobile payment ecosystem in the Czech Republic. This service will continue to evolve and adapt as the market for mobile payments expands to include NFC payments capabilities,” said Eric Duforest, Managing Director Europe at Oberthur Technologies.
Pankaj Gulati, CEO of MoreMagic Solutions, commented: “At MoreMagic, we are committed to developing open mobile commerce and financial services solutions that offer users around the world flexibility of choice, convenience and ease of use to complement today’s fast-paced lifestyles by eliminating the barriers to entry for merchants into the world of mobile payments and enable banks and operators to inter-operate in a trusted manner to deliver real-time services to their customers.”
About MOPET CZ
MOPET CZ was founded in 2010 by Tomáš Salomon and Viktor Peška, bankers with many years of experience, and four bank Česká spořitelna, GE Money Bank, Raiffeisenbank, UniCredit Bank and all Czech mobile operators - Telefónica, T-Mobile, Vodafone. In May 2012, the company was granted permission to operate by the Czech National Bank along with status as an electronic money institution. MOPET CZ is a transaction centre for mobile payments and its goal is to make MOBITO the standard type of payment on the market. Together, the shareholders represent almost 60 % of the retail banking market and 100 % of the mobile phone market.
For more information: www.mobitoplatito.cz
About Oberthur Technologies
Oberthur Technologies is a world leader in the field of secure technologies: systems development, solutions and services for smart cards (payment cards, SIM cards, access cards, NFC…) and for secure identity documents, traditional and electronic (identity card, passport, health care card). Created in 1984, Oberthur Technologies employs over 6 000 employees. With 50 sales offices across 5 continents, Oberthur Technologies’ international network serves clients in 140 countries.
For more information: www.oberthur.com
About MoreMagic Solutions, An Oberthur Technologies Company
MoreMagic Solutions is a wholly owned subsidiary of Oberthur Technologies and a leading provider of mobile commerce and financial services solutions for mobile operators, financial institutions and other service providers worldwide MoreMagic’s flexible and scalable platform enables the delivery of a full suite of secure mobile commerce and transaction-based services including: P2P payments, remote and proximity payments, bill payments, mobile money transfer and airtime top-up. MoreMagic has more than 30 active deployments and over 120 mobile operators across 60 countries are connected to its international recharge hub.
For more information: www.moremagic.com