In partnership with payments system service Golden Crown, MTS launched the ‘Mobile Ticket’ scheme this week in Russian city Novosibirsk. The move is designed to create next stage of the electronic payment system in the Commonwealth of Independent States – comprising of former Soviet Union countries.
Electronic transport cards have been used in the city for a number of years, with more than 1,070 buses and trains already using an electronic payment system.
SIM-based near field communication (NFC) payment was first introduced onto public transport in French city Nice, during 2010, and MTS expects to roll-out the scheme further afield.
“We hope that the NFC service in Novosibirsk will become a basis for the introduction of similar scale transport projects across Russia,” said Dmitriy Panfilov, director of financial services at MTS.
“By the end of 2013 we will launch similar projects across several cities. Whilst it may take a number of years, I am certain that payments from mobile phones across public transport will become as commonplace as it is today with electronic card payments.”
Since May 2012, more than 30,000 payment points’ terminals for PayPass, the payment system of MTS and MasterCard, have been utilised in Russia..
“We are pleased that, together with our partner MTS, we can offer citizens a more modern and advanced way to conveniently pay for travel on public transport that is quick and easy,” added Alexander Grishin, director of payment systems at Golden Crown,.
He added: “Utilising NFC technology in this way is still evolving, but there is no doubt that NFC will become the future of mobile services."
