MasterCard Worldwide and USA Technologies have announced that six prominent vending companies have committed to installing e-Port cashless payment technology on their vending machines to accept MasterCard PayPass cards and devices. The are North County Vending, Five Star Food Service, A & B Vending, First Class Vending, Mid-Atlantic Vending, and PGI Services. Their machines are part of the deployment of 5,000 PayPass- and cashless- enabled vending machines announced late last year.
"As a result of our work with USA Technologies, MasterCard PayPass is now available on vending machines in major cities across the US, giving consumers a faster, more convenient way to make purchases from beverage and snack machines," says T.J. Sharkey, group head, National Accounts, U.S. Commerce Development, MasterCard Worldwide. "We are making it easier for bottling and vending companies to offer more diverse products with higher price points to consumers, while at the same time enhancing the customer’s purchasing experience."
The USA Technologies wireless activated e-Port G6 allows vending machine customers to use either their traditional magnetic-stripe credit cards or new contactless cards such as MasterCard PayPass to make purchases. With PayPass, consumers simply wave their cards in front of the e-Port wireless reader or tap the reader with it.
"Cashless payment technology offers vending machine customers more payment choices, adds security and improves auditing, while providing greater ease and speed when making purchases," says USA Technologies President/COO Stephen Herbert. "The $46 billion vending industry is rapidly converting to cashless payment, offering operators improved efficiencies and new revenue streams."
The rollouts follow e-Port G6 deployments by several of the nation’s largest bottling companies, including Coca-Cola Bottling Company United, Inc., the country’s third largest—and largest independent—bottler; the Philadelphia Coca-Cola Bottling Co., the fourth largest Coke bottler in the nation; the Great-Plains Coca-Cola Bottling Co.; and Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages.