T-Mobile m-payment revamped - another chance for internet vendors

• Transaction limit doubled
• Special offers for vendors
• Annonce the most successful partner, erotic services most frequently used

Prague, 7 September 2004 - T-Mobile has prepared changes to the terms and conditions of its m-payment service, thus significantly broadening the possibilities of this payment tool. With T-Mobile m-payment, users can buy goods and services from internet and WAP vendors, and may now spend up to CZK 700 per transaction. At present, this service can be used with twelve companies, the most successful business partner being ANNONCE, k.s., with several hundred users paying for ads using their mobile phones each month. Most partners are adult content providers; other partners include internet encyclopaedia and gaming server operators.
The m-payment service has many advantages, the main one being the availability of the "means? of payment. Over 90% of the Czech population uses mobile phones on a daily basis, which is by far not the case of credit or debit cards. Other advantages of this payment method are ease-of-use, simplicity, speed and the corresponding degree of security. "At present, it is not possible to head downtown just with your mobile, as mobile payment is possible only at selected points-of-sale. Nevertheless, it can be expected that vendors will fully realize the underlying potential and the availability of the service will gradually increase,? says Jiří Dvorjančanský, Executive Vice President Marketing at T-Mobile, adding, "Receiving m-payments is relatively easy and this payment method brings further profit for vendors.? In addition to increasing the transaction limit, T-Mobile is also introducing a measure that will lower the barriers for vendor partners by launching an incentive system which is also known from the credit/debit card sector. The principle of this system is to motivate vendors by making the margin dependent on the volume of transactions realized during a given period. With increasing volumes of transactions, m payment gets more profitable for the partner and it is thus likely to become popular with a larger number of vendors.

Advantages of m-payment for customers
Expanding portfolio of goods/services - electronic goods and services

• Easy access - the user just needs to be registered at t-zones and have the m-payment service active. The m-payment service is activated automatically for all T-Mobile customers and it can also be activated under My T-Mobile at WAP or t-zones.
• Simple process - reservation and payment take place at the same time, so you do not have to record or remember anything; the ID number of the payment will be included in a confirmation SMS. The payment takes place in just five steps: 1) selection of m-payment on the vendor's site from which you are buying the goods or service, 2) automatic routing to the T-Mobile payment gate, and registration via the t-zones user name and password, 3) payment confirmation, 4) information of the result of the payment on the web and via SMS, 5) automatic routing back to the vendor's site.
• Favourable payment method - you do not pay more for the products and services than if using cash or another payment method. A fee is usually charged by vendors for cash-on-delivery payments, as this payment method is more expensive. This is actually another advantage of m payment - in the case of contract customers, m-payment basically involves a short-term loan, as the client receives the product but pays for it only when paying for the operator's services.
• Security - you can set up your own daily limit, and you are informed of each payment via a confirmation SMS.
• Ease-of-use - via the internet, WAP or the infoline, you can set up the daily limit and access to the service (activation/deactivation).
• Speed - the payment takes place in real time

Advantages for vendors

• One of the few payment methods that can be used to sell goods over the internet and WAP, easy and trustworthy from the user's point of view
• Simple application - T-Mobile has prepared a special application that simplifies the implementation of the service in the existing e-business system
• Profitability - margin depending on the volume of transactions realized
• Potential for customer base increase

m-payment in the Czech Republic
T-Mobile introduced the m-payment service at Invex as early as 1999, thus becoming one of the first operators to launch m-payment. Although the service has not yet been frequently used in a significant number of transactions, its purpose has been fulfilled - showing the ease of using payment methods of this type. At first, it was possible to use it to buy drinks from CocaCola dispensers and to pay at Aral car washes. In 2003, T-Mobile refocused it on goods in internet shops - although these shops accept credit and debit card payments, many Czech banks restrict the use of cards for internet shopping. Other payment methods (postal money order, bank transfer) do not meet the speed requirements.

A study by the Mobile Payment Association based on a TNS Factum survey also confirmed T-Mobile's decision. The total of 355 respondents from across the Czech Republic were asked about their shopping habits with a special focus on cash-free payments. According to the respondents, the main advantages of m-payment are availability and ease-of-use. A third of the respondents appreciated the speed of the transactions, which is higher than in the case of credit or debit cards. Only ten percent of the respondents were worried about the security of the transactions, the rest of the respondents expressed their trust in m-payment. In the case of the opportunity to choose between m-payment and credit or debit card payment, users preferred m-payment for amounts under one hundred Czech crowns; in the case of amounts above one hundred Czech crowns, approximately 20% more users preferred credit or debit card payment to m-payment.

There are currently no comparable products on the market: Eurotel's Juicepay was terminated after a year of operation, and so was the Monetka.cz e-wallet and the  DirectPay.cz and I like Q services. The latest market addition is the i-plus system operated by Paynet (www.pay-net.cz), represented by its i plus card which can be purchased at newsstands, post offices and service stations.

?and in the world
In the late 1990s, "m-payment? was a popular term with which telecoms companies and system integrators were flooding operators and the public. In spite of this, the uptake of m-payment was rather slow at that time. Nevertheless, this payment method is now becoming increasingly popular, particularly with visitors travelling to London by car. Only those who have paid a congestion charge can enter the city centre, one of the payment methods being m-payment using the mobile phone. Thus, drivers can pay the congestion charge when, for example, waiting in a traffic jam.
In spring 2003, the world's leading operators Orange, Telefonica Moviles, T-Mobile and Vodafone established the Mobile Payment Services Association with the aim of defining m-payment standards. Tim Jones, CEO of the Association, can already see further potential m-payment users: "Almost every child has a mobile phone but not a debit or credit card.?
According to Strategy Analytics, m-payment will be used particularly on the internet. The volume of such payments is now basically zero but in 2005 it should amount to approximately two billion dollars. Subscriptions to MP3 music servers and other internet services will represent a large proportion of m payments.
At any rate, all companies involved - manufacturers, integrators, operators and media - are careful with their statements on m-payment to avoid repetition of the situation with WAP or 3G. This may only benefit the entire matter.

T-Mobile Czech Republic, a member of the international telecommunications group Deutsche Telekom, has almost 6.2 million customers, the number-one operator in the Czech market. T-Mobile is an integrated operator: in addition to telecommunications services, it offers comprehensive ICT solutions not only for companies, but also for other organizations and individuals. It provides outstanding services in the high-speed network, which was proved repeatedly by benchmark testing performed by umlaut (former P3) with Best-in-Test seal.

T-Mobile Czech Republic places emphasis on taking a responsible approach to the environment and society. It adheres to fair business practices, helps beneficial applications and services to see the light of day, supports non-profit organizations, small businesses and individuals, and lends a helping hand whenever crisis situations arise. The company’s employees serve as volunteers in many places across the entire Czech Republic.

More information about the company is available at www.t-mobile.cz, www.t-press.cz (the portal for journalists) and www.t-mobile.cz/pomahame (information on the company’s CSR activities).

Contact details of the press unit: press@t-press.cz.