Press Releases

Budapest, October 25, 2011

New smartphone application is available from today making bankcard payments fast, secure and convenient at several service providers and online merchants. Launching MasterCard Mobile opens a new era in the development of mobile payments, due to the fact that this is the first payment application in Hungary making it possible to pay only by one’s MasterCard bankcard, independently from which bank’s or mobile operator’s service is being used therefore opening up mobile payment applications for millions of Hungarian MasterCard cardholders.

„The growing popularity of smartphones made it clear for us and for our partners - Telenor, Hungarian Telekom, FHB Bank and Cellum - that there is a need to create an application running on devices of several operators and whose benefits every MasterCard bankcard holder may enjoy. Due to the remarkable cooperation of our partners we can now say that we have achieved this goal by launching a pioneer service in mobile payment also unique in Europe.” – said László Szetnics, MasterCard Europe, Regional Manager of Mobile Payment Services.

Currently, MasterCard Mobile provides payment services in three fields:

• cell phone top-up,
• convenient and quick payment of service provider bills,
• online payments.

Following the download and registration of the application the bankcard needs to be registered as well which has a onetime fee of HUF 99 (app. EUR 0,35). Once registration has been completed no card data or PIN needs to be typed in at each transaction. This makes mobile payments not only faster and more convenient, but also more comforting since according to recent surveys there are still many users who are reluctant to give their bankcard data online. When paying by MasterCard Mobile customers will not have to reveal their card number or the safety CVC code of the bankcard. Cardholders sign in with their mobile phone numbers or the identification code. Payment info received on the phone containing transaction data will be confirmed by giving a six-digit alphanumeric code (mPIN). This is an independent code, chosen by the user at the registration of the application and can be changed at any time. The code is not the same as the PIN code of the bankcard.

MasterCard anticipates the continuous expansion of services available through the application. Presently Telenor and QR coded T-mobile and T-Home bills can be paid through the app. Online shopping is possible in webshops of Bookline, Bonusz Brigad, Bortarsasag and GRoby.

László Szetnics emphasized: „Several merchants indicated their wish to join MasterCard Mobile Hungary so we expect quick development in this area. However, apart from retail services we also plan to launch further functions such as interpersonal money sending (P2P) within the app.”

With the help of the application Hungarian Telekom and Telenor customers can pay their service bills. One way of doing this is by taking a photo of the QR code and initiate a transaction.

Gábor Pukler, Hungarian Telekom, director for innovation and business development added: “As we have emphasized earlier mobile payment is a step ahead towards ideal distant payment solutions. MasterCard Mobile service now successfully eliminates limitations and allows customers to use their own MasterCard cards for this type of transaction. To help the expansion of the service Hungarian Telekom, as one of the largest bill issuers in Hungary, will put QR code on each T-Home and T-Mobile cash advance bill. Payment has never been easier, quicker and more convenient.”

Another tangible advantage of MasterCard Mobile compared with competing payment services such as bank transfer or debit authorization is that it has no additional fees apart from a one-time registration fee (HUF 99) and the cost of data transfer if any.

Tamás Foltányi, CEO at FHB Bank Service cPlc. said: “Nowadays, there is news of mobile payment solutions daily. Attempts that are not compatible with each other have little chance of survival even if they are secure, advanced technically as well as business-wise. All such initiatives will have a hard way to market success. However, truly good products are created by the cooperation of powerful players and in a lucky case consumers will support it too. In the case of MasterCard Mobile Hungary the cooperation of a Hungarian software developer company, a Hungarian bank together with two mobile operators earned the privilege to create the third such project worldwide.”

MasterCard Mobile can be freely downloaded to mobile phones using iOS 4.0 (iPhone), Android 2.2 or above, independently from mobile operator. For users who do not own mobile phones using one of these operation systems the application can be used with Telenor and T-Mobile dynamic SIM handsets by downloading an STK (SIM Toll Kit). This special SIM card can be obtained in operator’s shops.

“We at Telenor believe in the future dominance of services that are available through wireless communication practically from anywhere. A good indication of just how quickly these services are developing is that, due to the introduction of MasterCard Mobile, today people can effectively manage their finances through their smart phones. No wonder that the expansion of smart phones is four times quicker than traditional mobile sets. We are determined to keep up with the quickly growing demand and serve users requirement of mobility, speed and convenience by making available the newest models and by supporting new services such as MasterCard Mobile” – said Zoltán Takács, head of product and innovation at Telenor.

All MasterCard branded cards can be registered into MasterCard Mobile. In the near future customers will also be able to use the application with their Maestro cards. For the download and use of the application internet or (in case of SIM Tool Kit) SMS connection of the telephone needs to be provided.

“This application is the joint project of MasterCard, Hungarian Telekom, Telenor, FHB Bank together with Cellum – Hungary’s leading mobile payment software developer group. Transmission of sound, picture and text has been an everyday option for mobile phones for many years now. Cellum now moves bankcards onto mobile phones as well allowing customers to send money freely. Our developers have created an advanced system that helps people forget difficulties of top-up, postal payments, and online shopping. Cellum developed a QR code based system that is both simple for the consumer and quick and secure for merchants.” –said Balázs Inotay, Cellum Global Strategic Director.

According to data of the National Bank of Hungary, currently there are 3,6 million MasterCard bankcards in circulation. Therefore, substantial proportion of the total card portfolio can be used in the new MasterCard Mobile application.