Press Releases

Budapest, May 10, 2012 13:00

From May 10, 2012 train tickets reserved through the Internet not only can be paid with bank cards but also from the credit balance of mobile phones. The system was extended so by now the service is available to customers of all three mobile operators: T-Mobile, Telenor and Vodafone. Tens of thousands are expected to choose this purchase option in 2012. Consequent to the system development the number of online shoppers may increase, reducing the lines in front of train ticket counters.

MÁV-START Zrt. launched its Internet ticket sales system in 2008, enabling customers to buy train tickets avoiding the lines in fron of train ticket counters, even from home. Since November last year, passangers buying tickets in the system can not only print their tickets at the vending machines located in the stations but anywhere – even at home. Passangers used the Internet based train purchase option more than 1,2 million times so far, the service is becoming ever more popular.

From May 10 even those passangers can purchase tickets, seat reservations, as well as extra tickets for live animals and bicycles who so far distanced themselves from paying with bank cards through the Internet, as now they can choose the option of using their mobile phone credit balance payment method. The price of train tickets purchased this way is identical with tickets purchased any other way . Customers only need to pay for the additional charge of the SMS confirming the purchase, priced according to his tariff package. Shopping from the mobile phone credit balance can be done comfortably, in 24 hours a day, with the mimimum transaction limit of HUF 130 while the upper limit is HUF 7,500. Purchasing discounted tickets on this channel is not possible, so far only full fare tickets can be bought.

Train tickets can be ordered by logging in the MÁV-START Zrt. site ( www.mav-start.hu), opting for the mobile credit balance payment method and producing the mobile phone number the credit of which is used for payment. The service is available from all three networks, to Telenor, T-Mobile and Vodafone customers. In the purchase process the customer receives an SMS, and the purchase intention needs to be confirmed in 3 minutes. Following the purchase the railway company send the 10 digit code required to receive the ticket to the telephone number provided by the customer in SMS. The code can be entered into any of the Internet ticket vending machines located in 40 train stations in Hungary (the main train stations bearing touristic importance, where IC trains stop). The ticket can be printed anytime before the train departure, however tickets bought with mobile phones can even be printed much more comfortably, even at home!

Zsolt Kővári, chief executive officer of MÁV-START Zrt. said that the introduction of payment for train tickets from the mobile phone credit balance is an important milestone in in modernizing ticket sales with the intent of improving customer satisfaction, and further developments are planned to follow.

Further information about mobile telephone payment is available at www.mav-start.hu as well as at the MÁVDIREKT customer service telephone number of 06 40 49 49 49 (charging the local tariff). Passangers can also inquire information at their mobile operator.