Recently, MasterCard has been intensifying its development of contactless payments. The demands for faster, more convenient, and safe ways to pay have driven this movement at a faster pace. The contactless payment methods might be expected to be permanent for customers even after this pandemic ends. MasterCard stated that in the third quarter of 2020, their contactless penetration increased to 41% of in-person transactions globally, up from 37% in the second quarter and 30% a year ago.
In the wake of increasing usage and demands, MasterCard partnered with NMI and Global Payments Inc. to launch their first live Cloud Tap on Phone Pilot with Computer Engineering Group (CEG), a Napa, California- based independent IT Services provider. The Cloud Tap on phone is one of MasterCard’s innovative next-generation products with software that is hosted on Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform.
With this new Tap On Phone feature, any business - regardless of its size - can now deliver new and excellent contactless consumer experiences with a device they are already using.
Tap On Phone turns smartphone or tablet into an acceptance device and allows businesses to accept contactless payments foregoing the need to invest in hardware terminals or any kind of extra features.
The merchants can now offer pick-up or payment on delivery or can even provide faster checkout options to customers for in-store purchases as consumers tend to look for touch-free cash alternatives.
MasterCard is strengthening its Tap on Phone product and empowering the ecosystem partners to develop their own cloud-based products with new tools and abilities with the introduction of Cloud Point Of Sale.
MasterCard will make its pre-certified Cloud POS software development kits (SDKs) openly available in multiple cloud environments, and it will encourage the solution providers, fintech, acquirers, and processors to innovate and co-create new cloud-first products.
“We continue to see an accelerating shift to digital payments with businesses of all sizes wanting to provide swift, secure, compelling point-of-sale experiences. Cloud POS enables us to make these experiences available to our partners with greater speed and efficiency,” said Milan Gauder, global head of Mastercard’s Acceptance Solutions Group. “Our partners are the center of everything we do, and our trusted technology powers innovative experiences, choice, flexibility, and certainty, creating the products they need. Mastercard’s Cloud Tap on Phone delivers on our promise of ground-breaking products and innovation.”
MasterCard gathered a team of partners to launch Cloud Tap on Phone, it is as follows:
Leading payments enablement technology company NMI operates as a key integration partner and distributor.
Global Payments, which is a leading worldwide provider of payment technology and software solutions, will offer Point Of Sale acceptance technology.
Continuing the company’s commitment to empower and help small businesses grow, CEG, independent IT services from California that is serviced by ISO BNG Payments, has become the first company to pilot MasterCard’s Cloud Tap on Phone.
The development of Cloud POS technology and Cloud Tap on Phone product is initiated by MasterCard Labs which is the company’s new product development arm. The live product testing of the company’s pilot with CEG is followed upon MasterCard’s own purchase, N.Y. Campus. Cloud POS is a product of Mastercard’s multi-cloud strategy, meeting businesses, consumers, financial institutes, and partners in the cloud with innovative applications and services. The company will conduct further Cloud Tap on Phone pilots and commercial deployments in other markets in 2021. Currently, Mastercard’s Tap on Phone solution is in 16 markets across Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, North America, Middle East, and Africa. Pilots are taking place with partners in Costa Rica, Hong Kong, Poland, Kazakhstan, Romania, Canada, Belarus, Russia, Turkey, United Kingdom, among other countries.
Quote Sheet
Here is what the partners with MasterCard are saying:
"Tap on Phone technology perfectly complements the acceleration of contactless payments in the US market. This is a ground-breaking step in creating a world that enables merchants to turn their smartphones into a payment acceptance device without the need of an externally paired physical card reader.” - Nick Starai, chief strategy officer, NMI
“The pandemic has permanently shifted the way global commerce operates forcing companies to respond to increased demands for safe commerce solutions such as mobile ordering and contactless payments. These waves of innovation will continue to accelerate, driving more technological advances across the payments industry. As an innovation leader in the payments industry, we are proud to partner with Mastercard on the new Cloud POS acceptance technology solution that will better equip merchants of all sizes to provide a faster, safer, and more secure experience to help better serve consumers and their preferences for more advanced digital commerce solutions.” - Jim Egbert, senior vice president, business development and strategic partnerships, Global Payments
“CEG is very excited with the opportunity to work on the Mastercard pilot programme. We are looking forward to using the contactless tap on phone technology to enhance our service experience with our retail customers. As a technology company, we are always interested in exploring ways to stay at the cutting edge of technology development for our business and our IT customers. The Mastercard Tap on Phone program fits the bill!” - Eric Ross, general manager, Computer Engineering Group (CEG)
"We have been selling and supporting a wide range of mobile POS software and hardware solutions since the inception of mPOS. BNG Payments is constantly striving to increase our support excellence, and one way to do this is to find new and innovative ways to minimize hardware and software issues. With traditional solutions, we are relying on Bluetooth or audio jack-connected credit card acceptance devices that are all prone to connectivity issues between the device and smartphone, causing merchants to have transaction issues and downtime. With Cloud Tap on Phone, we are reducing potential failure points to just a smartphone and data connection as well as reducing upfront cost by eliminating the need for additional hardware. This will be the future of mobile card-present transactions and I am happy to see that merchants and cardholders stand to gain the most from this innovation." - Ryan Theis, chief strategy officer, BNG Payments
MasterCard in its MasterCard Economics Institute’s Economy 2021, looks at the past year’s economic trends in order to predict what will come next for businesses. MasterCard has estimated that around 20% to 30% of the peak of the pandemic-related online shift will be permanent.
The shift includes everything from contactless payments to pick-up orders and ‘tele-everything.’ In addition, the trend is now multi-generational with older people now using more digital services.
Along with the shift, Digital Main Street also falls in line. It is also known as the frequency of brand-new businesses that are being created online rather than in a brick-and-mortar store. MasterCard predicted that this shift is likely to continue in the future.