MasterCard Canada Brings PayPass to BlackBerry Smartphones

In partnership with BMO Bank of Montreal and Research In Motion, MasterCard Canada has announced that it is bringing mobile payments to BlackBerry smartphones through its MasterCard PayPass ‘tap and go’ contactless payment technology. MasterCard is beginning a four-month trial in which participants will use PayPass Mobile Tag-equipped BlackBerry smartphones to make purchases at any of the 8,500 merchant locations in Canada that accept MasterCard PayPass. As announced, the trial is contactless sticker-based and doesn’t appear to include any application integration with the Blackberry handsets.

For the first time, the mobile payment will integrate with the device, with a confirmation email of each transaction sent to the BlackBerry smartphone, including purchase details such as the amount, retailer and date of transaction.

“With this trial, MasterCard continues to lead the industry in bringing secure contactless payment to mobile devices in Canada,” said Scott Lapstra, Vice President, Market Development, MasterCard Canada. “Consumers have embraced mobile applications and we expect this new trial to have a significant impact on the way goods and services are paid for at the point of sale in the future.”

“BMO Bank of Montreal is excited to partner with MasterCard to continue the work of bringing mobile payments to Canadians,” said David Heatherly, Vice President, Payment Products, BMO Bank of Montreal. “This pilot will allow us to evaluate many aspects of the mobile payment experience and is an important step towards mainstream use and acceptance.”

“Interest in mobile commerce continues to grow and the BlackBerry platform is uniquely positioned to provide a secure, robust and reliable foundation for innovative solutions such as the PayPass Mobile Tag,” said Tyler Lessard, Vice President, Global Alliances and Developer Relations at Research In Motion. “BlackBerry products and services have simplified and enhanced a broad range of everyday tasks with a unique mobile experience and we look forward to working with MasterCard and BMO to extend that mobile experience to commerce.”

How it Works

The mobile payments in this trial are made possible through a PayPass Mobile Tag, a self-adhesive device that may be attached to a BlackBerry smartphone to add MasterCard PayPass contactless payment capability. The Mobile Tag contains the same chip and antenna found in a regular PayPass card, with the addition of special material to reduce interference between the Mobile Tag and the phone to which it is attached.

Whether consumers are using a PayPass enabled mobile phone or credit card, they enjoy the same protections from fraud with PayPass as they would with conventional MasterCard payments. PayPass is supported by robust, multi-level security protections including the encryption of PayPass radio frequency transaction transmissions and the multiple security protections of the MasterCard payment system.

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