Today Florence launches its Mobile Ticketing service on the city’s public transport lines managed by ATAF, a service realized by the four main Tlc companies (Tim, Vodafone, Wind, 3 Italia) in collaboration with Ericsson. The service offers the option of buying bus tickets with your telephone credit simply by sending an sms. The service is already available to TIM, Vodafone and Wind customers and will soon be available also to 3 Italia customers.
ATAF is the first transport company in Italy to offer its passengers a service which is accessible with mobile phone and smartphone for purchasing electronic bus tickets: finally, the cost of the ticket can be paid directly from one’s phone credit, without need for registration or other additional operations. The realization of the service was possible tank to the agreement sealed by the telecommunications operators and ATAF with Ericsson, provider of the mobile ticketing service, and represents th3 first implementation of a solution available to all transport companies in Italy.
With this initiative the telecommunications operators strengthen their efforts in innovation and payment simplification which began last May with the launch of the “Mobile Pay” platform.
The purchase and validation of the electronic ticket is achieved simply and immediately: it is sufficient to send an sms containing the ATAF text to the dedicated number 4880105 before boarding the bus. The cost of the ticket is 1,20€, plus the cost of the sms which varies according to the operator. After a few seconds the passenger will receive a message containing the details of the ticket such as, for example, the issuing time and the period of validity. The validation of the ticket is simultaneous to the purchase and therefore it does not need to be obliterated. If asked to show the ticket on board it will be sufficient to show the bus conductor the code received via sms: it is necessary to have received the sms confirming purchase of the ticket before boarding the bus.
The transaction is achieved with the most advanced safety standards with an encrypted data management and a direct connection to the operators’ pricing systems. A safe and easy to use system that aims to boost the phone credit micro-payments market.
The electronic ticket represents another step forward in the direction of mass m-commerce, a safe and open system which turns the mobile phone number into a virtual purse for the purchase of digital goods.
The demand for mobile payments, that is, the option to purchase goods and services through the mobile phone, is constantly increasing. According to a research conducted by the Observatory of the Milan Polytechnic on the users’ preferences in mobile services, 65% of interviewees expressed their interest in Mobile Ticketing.
Florence, 28 March 2012
