I am skeptical of companies that try to improve on cash. There's something profound about how we handle money; changing our behavior with it is no small matter. Yet time is even more precious, and technologies that make everyday transactions quicker or more convenient can break through our habits. When they do, adoption is rapid and massive. Look at ATMs, or phone cards in Europe.
FreedomPay could possibly fit into this breakthrough category. The company runs a system in which wireless RFID (radio-frequency identification) fobs or cards can be used instead of cash for small transactions. Merchants are charged less for these payments than they are for credit or debit card transactions, and they're also much quicker (FreedomPay president Bob Pons tells me one customer, McDonald's, allows 17 seconds for cash handling at the register; this reduces even that). Also, stores can run loyalty programs, as they instantly know the identity of customers. (Anonymity remains one of real cash's greatest virtues.)
Users get the reward programs, convenience, and lightning-fast transaction times. Strict limits on purchasing power balance speed with fraud exposure.
Revenues come from small transaction fees as well as management of rewards programs. The company has raised $13 million.
- Rafe Needleman
COMPANIES FreedomPay PayPal E-ZPass (consortium home page) Texas Instruments (RFID home) VeriSign Visa Book: Money and the Meaning of Life (by my father, Jacob Needleman)
RELATED STORIES Finally, faster food McDonald's fries up new Net venture Micropayments, megaproblem Don't bank on mobile payments You're in my space (RF tags) You've got money! (Paypal) What planet are you from? (Achex) It's in the card (PrivaSys) Card shark (Target)
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I am skeptical of companies that try to improve on cash. There's something profound about how we handle money; changing our behavior with it is no small matter. Yet time is even more precious, and technologies that make everyday transactions quicker or more convenient can break through our habits. When they do, adoption is rapid and massive. Look at ATMs, or phone cards in Europe.
FreedomPay could possibly fit into this breakthrough category. The company runs a system in which wireless RFID (radio-frequency identification) fobs or cards can be used instead of cash for small transactions. Merchants are charged less for these payments than they are for credit or debit card transactions, and they're also much quicker (FreedomPay president Bob Pons tells me one customer, McDonald's, allows 17 seconds for cash handling at the register; this reduces even that). Also, stores can run loyalty programs, as they instantly know the identity of customers. (Anonymity remains one of real cash's greatest virtues.)
Users get the reward programs, convenience, and lightning-fast transaction times. Strict limits on purchasing power balance speed with fraud exposure.
Revenues come from small transaction fees as well as management of rewards programs. The company has raised $13 million.
- Rafe Needleman
COMPANIES FreedomPay PayPal E-ZPass (consortium home page) Texas Instruments (RFID home) VeriSign Visa Book: Money and the Meaning of Life (by my father, Jacob Needleman)
RELATED STORIES Finally, faster food McDonald's fries up new Net venture Micropayments, megaproblem Don't bank on mobile payments You're in my space (RF tags) You've got money! (Paypal) What planet are you from? (Achex) It's in the card (PrivaSys) Card shark (Target)