Mobile Wallet or Bust!

Last updated: 30 September 2015

A one-of-a-kind challenge is coming to the U.S. next week!

Starting next Monday (June 10th), we’ve tasked two tech-savvy individuals from Austin and Salt Lake City to pay for most of their daily needs using just their mobile phone.  In one corner we have Austin blogger, Josh Kerr (‘uber entrepreneur’) and in the other, from Salt Lake City,  Kathy Dalton (technology lover). Over the coming week, they will compete against one another to complete a series of tasks (including getting a haircut, buying groceries and going to the movies), using only their NFC-enabled mobile phones, equipped with the Isis mobile wallet app.

Isis recently selected Austin and Salt Lake City as the two pilot zones for its mobile payments technology, with the technology and innovation heritage of both cities playing a key role in their selection.  From Monday, our two bloggers will be sharing their experiences of using mCommerce in both cities, and you can keep up-to-date on all the action here on the Gemalto telecoms blog, via our Twitter feed and on the hashtag #GemaltoNFC. Both will also be blogging about their experiences on their own blogs, so keep checking in with Kathy at http://www.adventuremom.tv and Josh at http://joshkerr.com/ to see how they progress. And if you think you’ve got a great idea for a challenge for Kathy or Josh, let us know on Twitter or via the comments section below.

The aim of the challenge is to find out a bit more about the technology that’s behind the payments that Kathy and Josh will be making next week. The aim is to show that NFC technology is for everyone and readily available for a range of tasks. Most manufacturers have integrated it into their premium handsets, but we’ll be using a Samsung Galaxy S4 handset and a Motorola Razr HD, both on the Verizon network, enabled with the Isis Mobile Wallet app.

Isis is a joint venture between AT&T Mobility, T-Mobile USA and Verizon Wireless.  Its mobile wallet can store payment cards, offers and loyalty cards in your phone and transmit payments, offers and loyalty information to the payment terminal at participating merchant locations using NFC technology.

During our challenge, we’re encouraging Kathy and Josh to be as adventurous as possible (in order to earn more points), but for those at home, there are plenty of recognizable businesses offering contactless payment terminals. A list of participating outlets can be found on the Isis website.

So tell us, is there a particular place you want our bloggers to try?

To follow the Contactless Challenge on Twitter and put your questions or tips to our bloggers @KathyDaltonSLC and @JoshKerr, check out the hashtag: #GemaltoNFC.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *