Posts Tagged ‘mobile payment’
MobileBeat: Sentegra’s meWallet makes secure mobile payments a reality
Sentegra is one of 20 promising startups included in the Startup Competition, and is in the running for one of two coveted Tesla Awards.
Mobile transaction startup has come up with an all-encompassing mobile wallet platform with its . In addition to secure mobile payments, meWallet also includes authentication and certification functionality, as well as digital ticketing.
The system is buoyed by Sentegra’s “idGadget” devices, and a web-based back end platform. The devices are each built for secure transaction and authentication (biometrics capabilities are built-in), and include a standalone electronic wallet media device, as well as a secure cellphone attachment that can turn any phone with Bluetooth into a secure wallet.
The company claims that its devices are the first near-field communication (NFC) products — devices that can communicate in close proximity to one another — that can both send and receive data with existing NFC products. They allow for the “holy grail” of NFC — interactive communication between consumers and merchants in real-time. The company is in discussions with cellphone manufacturers to embed meWallet hardware into upcoming devices.
Sentegra has spent seven years researching the needs of consumers and the variety of businesses and organizations that are looking for a trustworthy mobile payment platform. The company believes that its established relationships with customers and partners globally will put ahead of competitors like .
Based in Golden, Colo., Sentegra is one of several mobile startups launching this week at the . We’re still awaiting funding details from the company.
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Google offers its own spin on mobile payments for Android users
While not exactly a competitor to the hot mobile payment startup , Google released last week a mobile payment option of its own for merchants and Android phone users. The company has developed which merchants can use to allow Android users to pay for items with Google Checkout, reports .
Merchants first need to and then use the to embed the web store template on their website (they can also just for this purpose). Then, after filling in their products in the Gadget’s spreadsheet, they need to for the Chrome web browser.
When a customer decides what to buy, the merchant creates a cart on their own computer and selects the green “Checkout with Android” button, at which point a (a two-dimensional bar code) is generated for the purchase. The customer then simply scans the code with their Android phone and is directed to a checkout page where they can complete the purchase on their own.
It certainly doesn’t sound as dead-simple as Square’s checkout method — which entails customers swiping their credit card on a retailer’s iPhone or Android device with Square’s tiny card reader, and then going through a quick signing process. And since it requires an Android phone, the Android Payment Extension has little chance of taking on the more ubiquitous Square, which works on both Android devices and the iPhone. But it avoids the privacy concerns of customers handing their credit cards over to strangers, as well as other potential currently delaying Square.
Eventually, Google may figure out a way to make the service accessible to the iPhone and other platforms. Most smartphones have the ability to read QR codes with the addition of apps, but the fact that there’s no standard way to do it on the iPhone and other platforms will forever be a hindrance to services that rely on the codes.
Don’t miss , VentureBeat’s conference on the future of mobile. The theme: “.” Now expanded to two days, MobileBeat 2010 will take place on July 12-13 at The Palace Hotel in San Francisco. . Tickets are going quickly. For complete conference details, or to apply for the MobileBeat Startup Competition, .
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