NFC technology takes a leap forward in the form of the Samsung GALAXY
S III with Visa mobile contactless payments
LONDON & SEOUL & NEW ORLEANS, May 09, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) --Samsung Electronics and Visa today announced that the Samsung GALAXY S
III, the latest in smartphone innovation, will be Samsung's Olympic
Games Phone during the London 2012 Games.
A limited edition showcase device enabled with Visa's mobile payment
application, Visa payWave, will be available for Samsung and Visa
sponsored athletes and trialists, making it possible to buy merchandise
with a wave of the device at thousands of retail locations throughout
London.
Samsung's Olympic Games phone for the London 2012 Games, comes equipped
with Near Field Communication (NFC) payment capability and is the next
step in the partnership between the two global Olympic Games sponsors as
they work together to drive the availability of commercial mobile
payments around the world.
"Mobile payment services enabled by NFC technology are gaining momentum
around the world. The Samsung GALAXY S III has been created with our
human needs and capabilities in mind and is the ideal device to showcase
the ease and convenience of Visa's mobile payment application at the
London 2012 Olympic Games," said DJ Lee, Executive Vice President and
Head of Sales and Marketing team of Samsung's Mobile Communications
Business.
By the time of the Olympic Games there will be more than 140,000
contactless terminals around the UK. From the moment visitors land at
Heathrow they will be immersed in a contactless payment experience with
everything from taxis, to retail outlets, to the Olympic Park itself.
Sandra Alzetta, Senior Vice President of Mobile at Visa Europe says:
"Mobile technology has long been a revolutionary force in our lives and
NFC-enabled devices such as the Galaxy S III will fundamentally change
the way we pay. The future is mobile and cash usage will only continue
to decline as people use their mobile devices to manage their money,
shop and pay. This summer our partnership with Samsung will showcase all
the advantages of the future of payments: security, convenience, speed
and flexibility being forefront among them."
"The GALAXY S III with NFC technology is part of an evolution that will
entirely change the way people shop, pay and get paid all over the
world," said Bill Gajda, Global Head of Mobile Products at Visa Inc.
"This summer we will be demonstrating the future of payments in London -
a future where most consumers will rely on mobile devices, tablets and
PCs to manage their daily financial lives. Our relationship with Samsung
gets us closer to that vision, with a stunning new device that is sure
to turn heads at the London 2012 Games."
The showcase device is supported and enabled by London 2012 Games
partner Lloyds TSB in the UK.
Mike Regnier, Personal Current Accounts & Credit Cards Director, Lloyds
TSB, says: "Mobile payments are set to transform the payment process
around the world, and will revolutionise the way people pay in the run
up to, during, and beyond the London 2012 Games. We are delighted to be
working with Visa to showcase the flexibility and convenience of this
new technology at the world's biggest sporting event, and excited to see
the Samsung Galaxy S III in action."
Visa payWave for mobile allows users to simply select the Visa icon on
their mobile device and hold the phone to a contactless payment terminal
to pay. Purchases above £20 require a passcode. The application also
allows customers to check their transaction history and view their
account balance.
Introducing Samsung GALAXY S III to provide a life extraordinary
Designed for natural, intuitive use, the GALAXY S III is a phone that
recognizes, understands, responds, and lets you share a moment instantly
and easily. An evolution of the GALAXY S brand, the GALAXY S III is a
sleek, smart, and simple phone that offers advanced software and
technology, with greatly enhanced usability and practicality to make
life easier.
The GALAXY S III is packed with an array of intelligent, interactive new
technologies that responds interactively to the human face, gestures and
voice. Using its motion detection software, the phone allows the user to
place a call by simply bringing the phone to their ear. Equipped with S
Voice, the phone also offers the most advanced natural language voice
recognition software.
Stylish, comfortable and elegant, the Samsung GALAXY S III transforms
how users experience and share content. It can beam multimedia to other
GALAXY S III phones with a single tap or touch; or mirror it directly to
a TV or PC screen so that everyone can share in the fun. It's Pop up
play feature brings video multi-tasking to a mobile phone for the first
time. Whatever you are doing or sharing, however you are communicating,
the GALAXY S III makes it effortless and natural.
How NFC is Transforming Mobile Phones into Payment Devices
NFC technology has been adopted by payment networks, banks, merchants,
mobile device manufacturers and mobile network operators as the global
standard for mobile payments.
NFC is already becoming the norm: Berg Insight reports that annual
global sales of NFC-equipped handsets has increased ten-fold to 30
million devices in 2011 and is forecasted to reach 700 million units by
2016. In addition, an estimated 20 countries are expected to launch NFC
services in the next 18 months, resulting in transactions approaching
$50 billion worldwide by 2014, according to Juniper Research.
Samsung, the Worldwide Olympic Partner for Wireless Communications
Equipment, and Visa, the Worldwide Olympic Partner and exclusive payment
services sponsor, will be demonstrating this new payment innovation with
the GALAXY S III in the Olympic Village and throughout London for the
duration of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
# # #
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor,
telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies
with 2010 consolidated sales of US$135.8 billion. Employing
approximately 190,500 people in 206 offices across 68 countries, the
company consists of eight independently operated business units: Visual
Display, Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, Digital
Appliances, IT Solutions, Digital Imaging, Semiconductor and LCD.
Recognized as one of the fastest growing global brands, Samsung
Electronics is a leading producer of digital TVs, semiconductor chips,
mobile phones and TFT-LCDs. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com
About Samsung's Involvement in the Olympic Games
Samsung began its Olympic Games involvement as a local sponsor of the
Seoul 1988 Olympic Games. Beginning with the Nagano 1998 Olympic Winter
Games, the company extended its commitment to the Olympic Movement as
the Worldwide Olympic Partner in the Wireless Communications Equipment
category, providing its proprietary wireless communications program,
called Wireless Olympic Works (WOW), and mobile phones. These innovative
mobile phone technologies provide the Olympic Family with real-time
information and communications services. Samsung also supports the
Olympic Torch Relay and hosts the Samsung Mobile Explorers to share the
excitement of the Olympic Games with people around the world and enable
everyone to participate in the Games through its smart mobile
technology. Samsung's commitment as a Worldwide Olympic Partner
continues through to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
About Samsung's Involvement in the Paralympic Games
Samsung is a Worldwide Partner of the IPC in the category 'Mobile
Telecommunications'. The partnership was launched on the eve of the
Torino 2006 Paralympic Winter Games, which Samsung supported as an
Official Games Partner for the first time ever.
About Visa Europe
In Europe, there are 445 million Visa debit, credit and commercial
cards. In the 12 months ending September 2011 those cards were used to
make purchases and cash withdrawals to the value of EUR 1.7 trillion. 14%
of consumer spending at point of sale in Europe is with a Visa card, and
almost 80% of that is on Visa debit cards.
Visa Europe is owned and operated by more than 3,700 European members
and was incorporated in July 2004. Visa Europe is independent of global
Visa Inc., with an exclusive, irrevocable and perpetual licence in
Europe, while both companies operate to ensure global interoperability.
As a dedicated European payment system Visa Europe is able to respond
quickly to the specific market needs of European banks and their
customers - cardholders and retailers - and to meet the European
Commission's objective to create a true internal market for payments.
Visa enjoys unsurpassed acceptance around the world. In addition,
Visa/PLUS is one of the world's largest global ATM networks, offering
cash access in local currency in over 200 countries.
For more information, visit www.visaeurope.com
About Visa Inc.
Visa is a global payments technology company that connects consumers,
businesses, financial institutions and governments in more than 200
countries and territories to fast, secure and reliable digital currency.
Underpinning digital currency is one of the world's most advanced
processing networks--VisaNet--that is capable of handling more than 20,000
transactions a second, with fraud protection for consumers and
guaranteed payment for merchants. Visa is not a bank, and does not issue
cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers. Visa's
innovations, however, enable its financial institution customers to
offer consumers more choices: Pay now with debit, ahead of time with
prepaid or later with credit products. For more information, visit www.corporate.visa.com
About Visa's Involvement in the Olympic and Paralympic Games
Visa is proud to be a Worldwide Partner of the London 2012 Olympic and
Paralympic Games. Visa plays an integral role in the Games, having been
a committed sponsor for 25 years. Visa is supporting more than 60
athletes from more than 30 countries through the Team Visa program.
Visa Europe is also the presenting partner of Team 2012 - 1,200 British
athletes who are striving to compete at the Olympic and Paralympic Games
in 2012. This is the first time that such a large group of athletes has
been supported in this way. At every Olympic and Paralympic Games, Visa
implements and manages the payment system infrastructure and network
throughout all Olympic Games venues. Visa has been a worldwide Olympic
Games sponsor since 1986 as well as a worldwide sponsor of the
Paralympic Games since 2002 and is the exclusive payment card and
official payment network of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
SOURCE: Visa
Visa Europe
Eleanor Orebi Gann, +44 (0) 7435.764.482
orebige@visa.com
or
Visa
Inc.
Claudia Parazzoli, +1-650-918-2181
cparazzo@visa.com