MasterCard Expands PayPass Deployment in Vending Machines

MasterCard Worldwide and USA Technologies announced today that Great Plains Coca-Cola Bottling Company will begin equipping vending machines with USA Technologies’ e-Port® G6 cashless transaction solution to accept MasterCard® PayPass(TM) contactless payments. Great Plains Coca-Cola Bottling Company, which vends beverages and snacks throughout central and northeast Oklahoma and northwest Arkansas, is the third major US bottling company to convert to cashless and contactless vending in recent months.

The machines will be deployed first in Oklahoma City and Tulsa in multiple market environments, including colleges and universities, healthcare, hospitality, and businesses and industry workplaces. The machines will accept MasterCard PayPass contactless payment functionality as well as all major credit cards and cash.

"Great Plains Coca-Cola Bottling Company is among the oldest and largest family businesses in the State of Oklahoma, and we owe our success to delivering quality product and innovative technology that adds convenience to the consumer’s purchasing experience," said Ed Smith, Director Operations/IS of Great Plains Coca-Cola Bottling Company. "Marketplace surveys increasingly show that credit cards are rapidly becoming the preferred method of payment, and by equipping our vending machines with e-Port and MasterCard PayPass, we are responding to what our customers want, making purchases from our vending machines even easier."

The installations in Oklahoma City and Tulsa are among the 6000 self-service point-of-sale terminals and vending machines MasterCard and USA Technologies are deploying in more than a dozen cities nationwide. Other major cities deploying the technology include Las Vegas, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston, Denver, Seattle, Miami, Orlando and Washington, D.C.

"Consumers want to use cards for small purchases, and MasterCard is working with innovators like USA Technologies and Great Plains Coca-Cola Bottling Company, who are embracing leading edge technology to respond to consumer demand," said T.J. Sharkey, Group Head, National Accounts, U.S. Commerce Development, MasterCard Worldwide. "By combining our technologies, we are providing greater speed, ease and more convenience for consumers making purchases from vending machines, while driving greater opportunity for vending operators to improve efficiencies and generate increased revenues."

The deployment of the 6000 e-Port G6 PayPass-enabled vending machines represents the largest rollout of contactless technology in the vending and point of sale markets in America.

To make a cashless transaction at a PayPass-enabled vending machine, consumers need only tap their MasterCard PayPass-enabled credit card or device on the e-Port terminal. The terminal flashes a light and produces a tone to signal the completion of the transaction in seconds. No signature is required.

The PayPass-enabled machines also accept non-card contactless credit payment devices, such as a convenient payment tag that fits on a key chain for easy access, as well as magnetic stripe technology for traditional swipe card payments.

Great Plains Coca-Cola Bottling Company is one of the ten largest Coca-Cola operations in the United States. The company also operates "Snappy Snack Vending," a full-line vending machine snack service.