MasterCard Canada, in partnership with Citi Cards Canada and Bell Mobility, has completed the near-field communications trial of Mobile PayPass in Canada.
MasterCard said that this was the first trial in Canada to use Bell Mobility’s wireless network allowing trial participants to make purchases using their mobile device at MasterCard PayPass acceptance locations across Canada. The four-month closed trial was a major step towards bringing mobile payments to Canadian mobile phone users, added MasterCard.
According to the company, the PayPass payment application is stored inside the NFC-capable mobile phone’s built-in ‘secure area’. Users have individual control of the payment application in the phone’s secure area. The PayPass payment application on these phones can also be password protected so that a lost or stolen handset cannot be used to make payments.
Furthermore the company said that PayPass puts the cardholder in control, the phone or card never leaves the user’s hand when making a payment, receipts help keep track of spending and purchases are protected by zero liability.
Scott Lapstra, vice president of market development at MasterCard Canada, said: This mobile payment trial is one of the latest in a series of MasterCard global payment trials. The completion of this trial provides us with Canadian-specific data that will help prepare for the potential roll-out of mobile payment services in the future.
