TOUCHGO TO END THE HUNT FOR CASH AT VENDING MACHINES WITH ZAPP

TouchGo Technology Systems Ltd (TouchGo), the intelligent vending machine software company announced that it is partnering with Zapp to enable mobile payments in its UK intelligent vending machines manufactured exclusively for TouchGo. This will put an end to the age old task of customers digging deep into their pockets to find cash for the vending machine, only to find they are out of luck. Now they just have to tap their mobile phone and pay by Zapp to retrieve their goods.

Consumers spend over £1.5 billion on refreshment vending machines in the UK today1 and the industry continues to boom. TouchGo will now be able to take further advantage of this appetite for quick food on the go, by ensuring even those adverse to the jingle of small change in their pocket can now spend in TouchGo machines. This partnership with Zapp follows TouchGo’ s early integration of debit cards and contactless payments on to its Azure cloud connected, 46” touch screen, video enabled PC based vending machines and keeps it at the cutting edge of payments and vending technology.

Zapp, the bank-backed mobile payment initiative, gives TouchGo a secure, quick and simple way to enable customers to pay even when they’ve left their change at home. Instead they can pay using just their existing bank app and mobile device. Payments are made in real-time and TouchGo consumers can check their balance on their phone at the point of sale.

A third of all UK bank accounts are soon to be Zapp-enabled, via partnerships announced in January with HSBC, first direct, Nationwide, Santander and Metro Bank. Zapp already has extensive partnerships with merchant acquirers and payment service providers, including WorldPay, Optimal Payments, Realex, SagePay, Secure Trading, TrustPay Global, Checkout.com and Elavon, which together manage payments for more than 60% of UK retailers.

Per Hovland, CEO of TouchGo, commented, “At TouchGo we pride ourselves on being at the cutting edge of technology. Intelligent vending machines are ubiquitous, and in addition to food and drink vending (including the new coffee tower concept), can now provide consumers with a range of retail products. However, innovations such as Zapp coupled with TouchGo’ s real time touch screen technology enable us to be even more convenient and attractive to consumers ensuring vending keeps pace as technology and the cashless society takes off.

 

Peter Keenan, Chief Executive of Zapp, commented, “The cashless society has been spoken about for a long time, but with 71% of consumers now owning a smartphone, we’d argue that the cardless society is also on its way. By partnering with Zapp, TouchGo is ensuring it is ready for this transition.”