Tokashiki, the FeliCa contactless and cashless island

Written by: Rebecca Milner on August 26, 2008 at 4:04 pm | In Technology & Gadget Trends | No Comments

Just because we haven’t mentioned FeliCa, the RFID technology that enables cashless, contact-less transactions, in a while doesn’t mean it isn’t catching on. Quite the opposite; because it is so widely accepted, it fails to make headlines these days.

Here is an update on what almost didn’t pass for newsworthy: Since last February, the Okinawan Island of Tokashiki began offering the Tokashiki Check, an Edy-like contact-less payment card that can be used anywhere on the 19.18km2 island.

With an estimated population of only 775 people, the system was enacted for the convenience of the tourists who come for diving and whale watching. In fact, the launch of the program was planned to coincide with a marathon held on the island that attracted not only a significant number of visitors, but also press.

FeliCa technology is easily integrated into urban life—payment cards double as train passes and are convenient for places oft-frequented by harried commuters, like convenience stores and vending machines; mobile phones equipped with the technology double as payment cards. In rural areas, however, the need is a little less profound, which explains why places that are visited by urban tourists are the first to widely integrate the technology. This is also helps explain why Sony is made its first steps towards bringing Felica to America in Hawaii (where many urban Japanese holiday), through the TROPA Waikiki Trolley pass and the IC embedded key chains used as season passes for the Hawaii Winter Basketball games.

Another strategy is to imbue the card with regional pride, like the IruCa card used in Takamatsu, a harbor city on rural Shikoku Island.

Iruca is the Japanese word for dolphin and an illustrated image appears on the card, all signs indicating where it can be used, and advertising campaigns for the service, like Suica’s penquin and Pasmo’s robot. The clever capitalization spells out IC, the type of card.

Tags: emoney, Felica, Okinawa, Osaifu Keitai, RFID, Sony
Category: Technology & Gadget Trends
Other categories: Marketing & Ad Trends, Fashion & Lifestyle Trends

McDonalds testing IC card “Kazasu Coupon”

Written by: Michael Keferl on May 21, 2008 at 12:17 pm | In Marketing & Ad Trends, Technology & Gadget Trends | 4 Comments

After nearly a year in development, McDonalds Japan has finally released it’s innovative new Kazasu Coupon (Contactless Coupon) loyalty and payment program, beginning with 175 stores and expanding gradually to its 3,800 nationwide stores by 2009.

Kazasu Coupon uses Felica RFID technology installed in most modern Japanese phones to create the first program of this type, allowing customers to choose their meals, redeem coupons, and pay for purchases all with their mobile phones. This is similar to CMode, the (underutilized IMHO) vending machine payment/coupon system from Coca-Cola, but with a far greater reach and selection.

To join, customers must download an application to their phones and register via mobile web, allowing them to choose the coupons they like. When making their purchase at McDonalds, the coupon is redeemed by placing the phone near the RFID reader at the register, instantly adding the item to the order. To complete the order, payment can also be done using NTT Docomo’s iD mobile wallet.

Below is a video from IT Media showing coupon redemption followed by payment.

Kazasu Coupon has the potential to be a powerful CRM program for McDonalds, allowing them to target coupons and campaigns directly to customer’s mobile phones according to their preferences and purchase history.

While this is still in a testing phase, Kazasu Coupon will likely include more interactive features and downloadable content once it becomes a full-fledged loyalty program (I predict “Club Mac” as the name), and will focus on CRM directly to the pockets and pocketbooks of their customers.

McDonalds press release

Tags: CRM, Felica, IC Cards, Marketing, mcdonalds, Mobile, RFID, ToRuCa
Category: Marketing & Ad Trends, Technology & Gadget Trends
Other categories: Fashion & Lifestyle Trends