Orange expects over half of its new smartphones for Europe will be equipped with contactless capabilities by the end of the year, according to a press release on the company’s website. The UK-based operator has also extended its relationship with Samsung in its push to dominate opportunities in NFC. Anne Bouverot, Orange’s Executive Vice President of Mobile Services, spoke with PYMNTS.com about why the company feels Europe is ready to go contactless.
PYMNTS.com: Why does Orange feel now is the right time to invest in the contactless payment market? What has Orange done to ready itself for this move?
ANNE BOUVEROT: Orange is the first European operator to make a clear commitment to the development of mobile contactless services, and we have been running NFC trials throughout Europe since 2005. In 2010, we launched commercial services in Nice, France, involving over 3,000 customers by end of the year. We also announced our intention to deploy a new generation of NFC SIM cards and NFC handsets that will facilitate the development of mobile contactless services in France and in our major markets in Europe.
We have significant experience in how to implement this technology through the multi-operator and multi-service commercial trials in France and Spain. We have seen that customers have a great appetite for these exciting services, starting with public transportation, which is big in Europe. Together with the other French mobile network operators, we’ve created the Cityzi brand that is licenced to the ecosystem players so that all can communicate about services in a consistent manner. We have also been very active in standardization and testing through the GSMA and other bodies, and we have established coordination teams in key geographies to work with local partners to drive NFC forward.
The reason we think that 2011 is the year that contactless services will come to fruition is that the ecosystem is in place, and handsets are now becoming available beyond the first handsets provided mainly by Samsung. By the end of 2011: we aim to equip at least 500,000 of our French customers with Cityzi devices; the first commercial NFC service in the UK will go live via the Barclaycard and Orange deployment; and over half of all new smartphones added to our range for Europe will enable mobile contactless services.
PYMNTS: Of all the NFC-handset manufacturers involved in the European market, who does Orange feel is best positioned for growth?
BOUVEROT: We are in discussions with many device manufacturers about NFC, including LG and Nokia. The first NFC-enabled handset that we will be launching in Europe is the Samsung Wave 578, which will be available in France, Spain, and Poland in Q2, before being available to our broader European footprint.
NFC presents an opportunity for all handset manufacturers, and the inclusion of SIM-secured contactless capabilities will lay the foundations for Orange to enable a tranche of new services from partners in the future, ranging from mobile payment to ticketing and transportation. Enabling contactless services through the SIM card is key for customers’ security and convenience – as a mobile operator we can provision services securely on the SIM card, disable them all at once if the handset is lost or stolen and re-enable them on a new handset.
PYMNTS: What is the business case for merchants in Europe to accept NFC payments? To what extent does it differ from the one for U.S. merchants?
BOUVEROT: We have seen broad interest from merchants during our trials across Europe. For example, over 1,000 merchants and most retailers in Nice accept mobile payment from Cityzi customers in addition to contactless card payments, so there is clearly demand and excitement amongst merchant community for NFC payments. Banks offer Cityzi customers a mobile payment solution that is not limited to small amounts and is therefore attractive for merchants and retailers. Retailers, such as the grocer Franprix, have also started a couponing service for its Cityzi customers.
PYMNTS: The transportation industry aside, what businesses do you believe will be the first to fully integrate NFC payment capabilities?
BOUVEROT: There are a number of compelling use cases for NFC outside of transportation, and we have deployed several of these cases, particularly in Nice. The Orange Cityzi Pass enables Orange customers to use Cityzi contactless services on their mobile handset. Services include local urban transport, payment in over 1000 shops, loyalty, couponing and tag reading. Citzyi (www.cityzi.fr) is coordinated by the Association Française du Sans Contact Mobile (AFSCM). The project includes other operators – SFR, Bouygues Telecom and the MVNO NRJ Mobile – and banks such as BNP Paribas and Crédit Mutuel/CIC, transportation company Véolia Transport, and retail chains such as La croissanterie, Game and Franprix.
Other use cases include:
– Storage of shop/hotel/airlines/etc loyalty cards in a “mobile wallet”
– Access cards to buildings, membership cards (swimming pool, library, etc)
– Cards storage and management (activation, code and balance tracking) are simplified
– Information tags:
– at the bus stop to know when the next bus is due;
– on sights for tourists (incl. audiovisual content);
– in shops to discover the current discount offer and obtain money-off vouchers
In addition, there is also a great opportunity for application developers and retailers/service providers to come up with new, compelling uses for NFC-enabled devices.
PYMNTS: Which countries in Europe will be the quickest and slowest adapters, respectively, of NFC payments?
BOUVEROT: The most extensive deployments have been conducted in France so far, and Orange in the UK will be the next to roll out NFC services in partnership with Barclaycard in Q2 of 2011. We are also currently conducting trials in Spain and Poland.
PYMNTS: UK Orange will be working with Barclaycard to launch the UK’s first commercial contactless mobile phone payments system this summer. Why did UK Orange choose to partner with Barclaycard?
BOUVEROT: We had the same vision – to revolutionize the way people make payments. Since our strategic partnership deal in 2009, Barclaycard has been at the forefront of rolling out contactless cards and readers (significant majority of those in UK are Barclaycard customers). Meanwhile, we have been leading the way in mobile. In joining forces, we’re uniquely placed to deliver the UK’s first commercial contactless service in the forthcoming months.”ª
PYMNTS: Why do you believe mobile contactless services will change people’s lives?
BOUVEROT: We are leading the third biggest revolution in mobile. After mobile voice services and the explosion in mobile data, mobile contactless services will change people’s daily lives. Contactless services are of tremendous relevance to customers, giving them a seamless, convenient and secure way to validate transport, get information, or make payments. To make this a reality for our customers, Orange is working with other operators, banks, retailers, transport and service providers to create an ecosystem that will stimulate the development of services adapted to everyone’s needs.
ANNE BOUVEROT
Executive Vice President, Mobile services
Anne Bouverot is currently responsible for Mobile services at Orange France Telecom; prior to this position she was in charge of International Business Development for the group. In 2008 she was promoted to Non Executive Director of Groupama, a major French insurance company with over 14B€ in revenue. In 2010 she was also appointed the Non Executive Director of Edenred, the world leader in prepaid voucher services with over 900m€ in revenue.
Before joining Orange Anne was head of the IT Services business unit at Equant; where she served multinational business customers worldwide. She has a wealth of experience in the Telecoms industry and began her career as an IT project manager for Telmex Mexico in 1991.
Anne has a Ph.D. degree in mathematics/ computer science from the Ecole Normale Supérieure and a telecommunications engineering degree from Telecom Paris. She currently lives in Paris with her partner and their two sons.
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