EU Commission say yes to Everything Everywhere, Telefonica UK (O2) and Vodafone UK joint venture

Everything Everywhere, Telefonica UK (O2) and Vodafone UK released a statement today to announce that the European Commission has granted unconditional clearance to their joint venture plans:

Everything Everywhere, Telefonica UK (O2) and Vodafone UK welcome today's news from the European Commission that their mobile commerce joint venture ("JV") has received unconditional clearance.
At the heart of the JV is a desire to bring to the UK an easy and effective solution for businesses to create and for consumers to enjoy mobile marketing and wallet services. With EC clearance received, the job of getting the JV up and running as quickly as possible can begin, starting with the hiring of the necessary people and the creation of the new company.
The mobile marketing platform is expected to be the first part of the business that is brought to market. The JV has the potential to transform the mobile marketing landscape in the UK. It will remove a number of the barriers that currently inhibit growth and create a single channel with access to millions of UK consumers at launch. It will provide a single contact point for media agencies, retailers and brands, enabling them to create campaigns that will reach millions of opted-in mobile users. This will apply across the majority of handsets, operating systems and mobile operators. For consumers, this means they will be able to receive the discounts and offers that they want to receive from the brands that are relevant to them.
In mobile payments, the JV will benefit businesses and consumers by accelerating the deployment of mobile wallets and associated services in a secure way. Through the solution offered by the JV, businesses will be able to connect once in order to offer a wide variety of mobile wallet services — including payment and loyalty cards — to millions of consumers on the majority of handsets, operating systems and mobile operators. It will give consumers a simple and secure shopping experience, allowing them to purchase goods and services using their handsets in physical locations such as shops, using contactless technology, as well as online.
The shareholders remain committed to making the JV services open to all, including all operators and MVNOs, third party publishers, banks, advertising agencies, retailers and any company that wants to engage in this space. The partners in the JV believe it has an important role to play in helping to keep the UK at the forefront of digital innovation, creating jobs, promoting innovation and stimulating competition.
 

To view jobs in the card and payment industry, go to http://www.cardandpaymentjobs.com

MasterCard and Everything Everywhere to launch joint digital wallet service

MasterCard will work with mobile operator Everything Everywhere to develop mobile and digital payment solutions.

Initially, customers will be able to make payments using mobile devices that have NFC functionality, allowing them  to make contactless payments at more than 100,000 retailers in the UK.

The two companies stated they would eventually focus on other areas of development including person-to-person money transfers, loyalty rewards schemes and digital payment services allowing consumers to have the same shopping experience for payment in-store, online or using their mobile device.

MasterCard and Everything Everywhere will also develop services that allow SMEs to accept payments using mobile devices, with further details to be announced later this year.

The two firms have an existing relationship, having worked together for Orange's Quick Tap platform, which allowed Barclaycard customers to use NFC technology to make payments.

The news is bound to intensify the ongoing battle for a share of the digiatl wallet market with competing providers holding different views on the technology that best suits consumers in making payments.

It is not yet clear, if or how the news could affect Everything Everywhere's joint venture with Vodafone and O2. The project,  dubbed Project Oscar, was set up by the three companies last year but has stalled while the European Commission (EC) carries out an investigation into the tie-up's implications for competition in the market for e-wallets and other services.

To view the latest card and payment jobs, go to http:/www.cardandpaymentjobs.com