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VeriFone Inc., the worldwide leader in electronic payment solutions, today announced that it has teamed with leading card payment processing system provider, Commidea, to introduce a new pre-certified “plug and play” Chip and PIN solution. The “Ocius” solution will be launched at Retail Solutions 2004 in Birmingham (NEC, 8th – 10th June).
Fully Chip and PIN-compliant, Ocius is a unique, EMV pre-approved, IP-enabled payment solution that removes the need for bank testing. The system, which is specifically aimed at the large proportion of retailers that are still to upgrade in time for the January 2005 deadline, reduces the time and expense to achieve Chip and PIN certification. The solution has received end-to-end approval from one of the UK’s major acquirers, with approval from the other major banks to follow shortly.
Developed to EMV Level 1 and 2 specifications, Ocius is a fully hosted, end-to-end service provided by Commidea that delivers an alternative and accelerated approach to Chip and PIN implementation.
Ocius provides an “out-of-the-box” solution for retailers, based on VeriFone's Omni 3600 mobile EFTPoS terminal, and on the modular Omni 3750 terminal to which the SC 5000 PIN pad can be added when required. The terminal application that Ocius provides has been designed to run on the VeriFone Omni range of IP-enabled products - including the Omni 3600 and 3750 terminals - is both easy to use and is capable of supporting Chip and PIN and/or signature verification.
The Omni 3600 uses GPRS and Wi-Fi wireless communications and can be deployed in a variety of environments, enabling a permanent connection to Commidea's authorisation servers. This eliminates call charges and support connections to all UK acquirers, with transaction authorisation taking as little as 5 seconds.
The Omni 3750 is a countertop device that can be deployed with a variety of communications options.
Commenting on today’s announcement, Nigel Bidmead, EMEA Managing Director for VeriFone said, "With the deadline for compliance fast approaching, many retailers are still looking for realistic and cost-effective solutions to the challenges posed by implementing Chip and PIN. By transferring transactions to a pre-approved Chip & PIN terminal, Commidea and VeriFone have helped remove the barrier of time-consuming and costly certification and enabled retailers to upgrade to the new standard quickly and securely."