mopay, a global specialist payment solutions for online merchants, today announced worldwide cooperation with Fon, said to be the world’s largest WiFi network. By enabling mopay mobile payments, Fon will allow smart phone or tablet users who have limited (3G/4G) or no internet access to quickly purchase access pass to its WiFi network. Users can now connect at over three million Fon hotspots simply by providing their mobile phone number.
Fon is the largest WiFi community in the world, with over three million WiFi hotspots and over six million users. The idea behind Fon is to share a small part of your home internet access with fellow Fon members and in return get free access to other members’ WiFi when on the road. Non-members can also use Fon hotspots but have to purchase passes to gain access. In addition to offering standard payment methods such as credit card and PayPal, Fon chose mopay to include a mobile payment option.
Alex Puregger, COO, VP of Business Development of Fon said: “Today people want to watch videos and play games on their smart phones and tablets. WiFi offers the best user experience for that. At Fon, we give people more opportunities to connect to WiFi, and getting them connected seamlessly is key. While Fon access is free for sharing members, non-sharing members buy WiFi passes to connect. mopay helps us to make that payment process quick and easy. Already, nearly half of the people who buy access to Fon do so via mopay. We’re happy to partner with mopay to improve the user experience.”
Ingo Lippert, CEO of MindMatics AG, the operator of mopay, said: “Although well established in online gaming, mobile payments are still a rather new payment method to most industries. mopay is a major driver in tapping into novel areas of operation. Our partnership with Fon shows that, once you start to think outside the box, there are uncountable scenarios where mobile payments significantly improve the shopping experience.”
With mopay, smart phone and tablet users near Fon hotspots can buy a Fon Pass by providing a mobile phone number at login. The charge is billed directly to the respective phone account, no registration is required. Customers can choose between a 25-minute pass and a one-hour pass. Pricing begins at $1.50.