PayPoint, the UK’s leading convenience retail bill payment network has teamed up with i-movo and the Evening Standard to enable PayPoint outlets to accept the Eros Card as payment for the newspaper.

Launched in 2007, the Eros Card was the first contactless, newspaper subscription card. Customers pre-purchase copies of the Evening Standard online at a discounted price, and then visit an Evening Standard vendor to collect their copy of the newspaper.  Until now the Eros Card could only be used at the newspaper’s own network of vendors in Central London, but from this month Eros Card holders will be able to use their contactless card at any PayPoint outlet that stocks and sells the Evening Standard. This new scheme will not only attract potential new customers to PayPoint outlets who have used their Eros Card elsewhere, but also allows the Evening Standard to significantly increase its card holder base in areas outside central London where they have not deployed their dedicated Eros terminals.

Transactions are simple to process, with retailers tapping the card on the built in contactless reader of the PayPoint terminal, which automatically checks the card account for credits.  The touch screen will display any credit that is left on the account and will print a receipt for the retailer’s records while the customer takes their copy of the Evening Standard.  PayPoint retailers will be reimbursed the full cover price of the newspaper within six days via their existing financial relationship with PayPoint.

Mike Igoe, PayPoint’s Retail Director commented: “We are delighted to offer customers the chance to use their Eros Card at PayPoint outlets which will drive additional transactions through our stores.  All PayPoint terminals benefit from an integrated contactless card reader and as the demand for this technology escalates, PayPoint retailers will be in pole position to take advantage. “

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Enquiries:
PayPoint Press Office 
020 7100 9999
paypoint@mischiefpr.com

Notes to Editors
PayPoint is the leading cash and internet payments company in the UK also with operations in Ireland and Romania. We handle in excess of £7 billion from over 503 million transactions annually for more than 5,000 clients and merchants. The company operates with several payment networks:

• The PayPoint branded retail network numbers over 19,800 terminals located in local shops (including Co-op, Spar, Costcutter, Sainsburys Local, One Stop, Londis and thousands of independents) in all parts of the UK and Ireland. Terminals handle gas and electricity meter prepayments, cash bill payments, mobile phone top-ups, transport tickets, London Congestion Charges, TV licences and a wide variety of other payment types for all of the leading utilities, telecommunications suppliers and many consumer service companies. This network is used by consumers, free of charge, over 8 million times a week. The network has 99% population cover on a 1 mile urban or 5 miles rural measure;
• Multiple retailer connections into the electronic till systems of over 4,300 outlets in addition to the branded terminal outlets including BP, Somerfield and Superdrug for mobile top-ups and selected payments from the PayPoint range;
• An ATM network which has 2,016 ‘LINK’ branded machines across the UK, also typically in convenience stores; 
• PayPoint.net, an internet payment service provider, provides secure credit and debit card payments for over 4,800 web merchants linking into all the major UK acquiring banks; and
• Pay Store, a Romanian mobile top-up operator with over 4,000 outlets equipped with electronic terminals and 2,000 other retail outlets. A bill payment service has been added to increase the breadth of PayPoint’s offering in Romania, in line with the UK branded retail network.
  

PayPoint floated on the London Stock Exchange in September 2004 and the company’s market capitalisation at 22 July 2008 was £399 million. PayPoint is widely recognised for its leadership in prepayment systems, smart technology and consumer service.