Boku Inc., the global leader in direct carrier billing, today announced new partnerships with every major mobile carrier in the UK to allow purchases of food and beverages using carrier billing via Verteda’s innovative Qjacker app.
This is the first time UK mobile subscribers can purchase real-world goods simply by storing their mobile phone number in the app and charging all purchases to their pre or post-paid mobile account.
“For vendors and consumers alike, one of the largest frustrations at major events in venues are queues at kiosks and concession stands. It’s a friction point that can often lead to customers going elsewhere or simply giving up,” said [Trevor Roberts, VP of Sales at Verteda, creators of Qjacker]. “Qjacker was built to reduce queues, thereby improving the fan experience, increasing spend per head for operators, whilst streamlining operational processes and reporting by integrating into our award winning InfoGenesis POS solution. Adding carrier billing into Qjacker via Boku is a natural extension of the fan experience that reduces effort further by removing the need to enter credit card information.”
“For years, we’ve seen the great benefits carrier billing provides to all of the largest online retailers, from Facebook, to Google, to Microsoft and Sony. All of those merchants paved the way for consumers to feel comfortable using carrier billing for everyday purchases in the real world as well,” said Jon Prideaux, CEO of Boku. “Leveraging the immediacy and low friction of mobile checkout to streamline the physical purchase process is the next great frontier in payments, and Verteda is leading the way with Qjacker.”
Boku is the only carrier billing provider to secure an e-money license from the Financial Conduct Authority and develop a model that enables the company to provide carrier billing for the purchase of physical goods. The company's license also applies to each country in the European Union as well countries in the European Economic Area, which could allow for future expansions of the kinds of services offered via Qjacker.