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The move is in conjunction with the reveal of a new Singtel Dash app, making the service an all-in-one platform
A late-March announcement from the Singaporean Land Transit Authority and Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore made waves when the two agencies revealed plans to roll-out a NFC payment system to allow Singaporeans to pay for mass transit by integrating their EZ-Link cards with their mobile devices.
At the time, two of the three telcos, M1 and Starhub, launched their NFC-enabled SIM cards almost instantaneously with varying pricing structures. Singtel, however, said it would wait until the end of April to launch its product.
Today, Singtel officially launched its Transit NFC SIM service and in conjunction also released an updated version of its mobile payments solution Singtel Dash — branding itself as Singapore’s all-in-one mobile payment platform.
Singtel Dash is not restricted to Singtel users as the company wrote in a press release, “Everyone in Singapore can access Singtel Dash for their payments needs, regardless of their telco relationship or device.”
Also Read: Forget Apple Pay or Samsung Pay, Hong Kong just implemented a revolutionary payment system
While the service came a bit delayed from the ‘late-April’ prediction (May 10), Singtel has built a service that now includes transit payments, transit top-ups, in-store and online retail payments as well as local and international money transfers.
Additionally, users can top-up the Dash account from any bank account and the company says it will offer deals and rewards to customers.
“Singaporeans should move forward with an efficient and trusted payments solution and Singtel Dash offers these capabilities. We are excited to enhance our payments ecosystem with everyday services such as transit, and end-to-end security features, giving our customers unprecedented convenience and peace of mind. Singtel Dash is truly a mobile payments solution designed for life in Singapore!” said Singtel’s Vice President of mComerce Gan Siok Hoon in an official statement.
Also Read: In Singapore, your phone is now your ticket to ride
In regards to the deals Sintel hinted at, the launch celebration offerings are a doozy.
Owners of Samsung phones can rejoice, Singtel is partnering with the Korean tech giant to offer free MRT, LRT, Bus fares and taxi rides for customers of Singtel Dash who use a Samsung smartphone. The deal is valid until May 31 2016.
All Dash customers, regardless of phone brand, will be offered S$1 (US$0.73) ‘Dash Deals’ near MRT stations as well as all Singtel, 7-eleven, Cheers and Watsons stores across Singapore. This promotion will also run until May 31 2016.
Finally, for a limited period, the S$5 (US$3.65) EZ-Link registration fee will be waived.
In late-April e27 published a commentary about a similar payment service launched through Hong Kong via the city’s Octopus system called ‘O! ePay App’.
It is hard not to draw parallels with how the services may work for the every day citizen as both platforms have integrated P2P payment services (albeit, Singtel’s offers international payments while the O! ePay App does not).
One key difference is the Hong Kong service was facilitated through a bank (Standard Chartered) while the Singtel Dash is, obviously, the product of a telecommunications company.
For a quick reminder, here is a list of devices in which the NFC technology will work.
1) LG Optimus G
2) LG Optimus G Pro
3) Samsung GALAXY ACE 3 With LTE
4) Samsung GALAXY Note II LTE
5) Samsung Galaxy Note 5 4G+
6) Samsung GALAXY Note Edge 4G+
7) Samsung GALAXY S III
8) Samsung GALAXY S III LTE
9) Samsung Galaxy S6 4G+
10) Samsung Galaxy S6 edge+ 4G+
11) Samsung Galaxy S7 4G+
12) Samsung Galaxy S7 edge 4G+
13) Sony Xperia™ Z
14) Sony Xperia™ Z2
15) Sony Xperia™ Z3
16) Sony Xperia™ Z3 Compact
17) Sony Xperia™ Z5
18) Sony Xperia™ Z5 Compact
19) Sony Xperia™ Z5 Premium
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Photo by Kevin McSpadden
The post The tortoise and the hare: While Singtel launches transit payments late, it comes with a bang appeared first on e27.
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