Samsung and Visa showcase mobile payments at the
London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games
NFC technology takes a leap forward in the form of the
Samsung GALAXY S III with Visa mobile contactless
payments
London, Seoul and New Orleans, May 9, 2012
Samsung Electronics and Visa today announced that 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 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 U.K. 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 showcase device is supported and enabled by Olympic Games
partner Lloyds TSB in the U.K.
Mike Regnier, Director of Personal Current Accounts, Lloyds TSB,
says: “Mobile payments are set to transform the payment process
around the world, and will revolutionize the way people pay in the
run up to, during, and beyond the London 2012 Olympic 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 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 €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 50 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.
For more information, visit www.visaeurope.com