TMG operate the largest newspaper pre-paid subscription scheme in the UK with over 300,000 readers. The existing scheme relies on paper vouchers that are accepted as payment by retailers and then sent back to TMG's clearing-house for settlement.

The trial will include a group of specially selected retailers from the GT Retail group who make home deliveries of the Telegraph and who are members of the PayPoint network. Each will be given a payment card that will be used weekly to claim the full retail value of newspapers to be delivered the following week. By swiping the card through the PayPoint terminal, the retailer will claim payment from TMG, which will be included on their next PayPoint statement. i-movo, the Secure Digital Voucher specialists, are providing the software platform to run the scheme.

"We have been studying digital payment schemes for some time," said Martin Harris, Subscription Sales Manager at TMG. "i-movo has emerged as the de-facto standard in this market by virtue of its relationships with leading payment companies and the unrivalled geographic coverage this gives them. In addition, its software platform has been shown to be flexible and robust in the many projects it has been involved in."

"Our agents work very hard to serve their communities, starting early and finishing late," said Mike Igoe, Retail Strategy Director at PayPoint. "This scheme will save them a considerable amount of time and they will get paid far more quickly by PayPoint than if they had to wait for the clearing house."

"Payments of over £300 per week will be made to some of the retailers taking part in this trial so security and resilience are vital," said David Tymm, CEO of i-movo. "Our platform is fully proven and has been used by over thirty leading companies. We are delighted to have now been chosen to support the UK's leading newspaper voucher scheme."