If you have been watching a lot of television lately you will notice that MasterCard has been marketing a new card that is more convenient than regular credit cards or checks. MasterCard, the world’s No. 2 credit-card association, is expected to have over 4 million paypass cards in circulation by the end of the year. Citibank, HSBC and Key Bank have all begun offering the paypass cards. MasterCard says to expect lots more of the PayPass cards to hit the market by mid-2006.
What is Paypass?
These are credit cards that are equipped with a radio-frequency chip that allows customers to pay for purchases by simply waving their cards at readers posted near cash registers or gas pumps. The pay-pass cards are easier to use than cash and writing checks, and in some cases having to run a credit card through a card swipe.
How Do I get a Paypass?
You may call your current credit card issuer and find out if a MasterCard with Paypass can be mailed to you. If you are not able to get your card upgraded then try applying for a HSBC, Citibank, or MasterCard that does offer this feature.
This is just one of the breakthroughs in technology that MasterCard is pursuing in order to increase convenience and boost usage in the coming years. A few of the other advances are with the cellular phone providers to turn cell phones into a high-powered payment and sales device. The cell phone program is still in the pre-launch stage here in the United States but its success overseas suggests it will appeal to a young, active generation.
MasterCard is counting increasing revenue and profits from this Paypass as it faces a variety of challenges in the marketplace, including new rivals and regulatory scrutiny. MasterCard, owned by more than 1,000 banks, formally revealed its plans to go public this year in an initial public offering in order to compete against the likes of American Express now with MBNA, and Google threatening to make a Paypal competitor with GBuy (formerly referred to as Google Wallet).
