Elavon Preparing for EMV/NFC Migration with Ingenico's POS Terminals

Hard currency is losing its appeal not only by consumers, but retailers who see cash as an inconvenience they must tolerate. Financial institutions have been working on a solution to this problem for a long time, and the convergence of several different technologies might finally help retailers dramatically reduce their dependence on cash.

EMV, derived from the first letters of the three largest payment organizations – Europay, Mastercard and Visa – and NFC (Near Field Communications) will come together to create a standard payment system for cards and mobile devices to work together without compatibility issues.

The new countertop and wireless terminals will merge the service and technology of Elavon and Ingenico for retailers in the U.S. and Puerto Rico as the next evolution of point-of-sale (POS) technology.

The new Telium2 series countertop and wireless payment solution from Ingenico is an adaptable payment option capable of handling any amount of transaction. It comes with multiple options for connectivity such as Wi-Fi, wireless GPRS, new generation IP and dial-up so transactions can be conducted at all times.

This technology is part of a pre-embedded contactless payment system for current and future technologies. Elavon has completed the Class A certification for the devices and software application required to operate them.

Different models will be available for retailers, including the iCT220 and iCT250 countertop terminals.

"We continue to grow and enhance our strategic, global relationship with Elavon. Their drive to deliver robust and innovative payment solutions to customers sets high standards for their partners throughout the entire value chain,” said Thierry Denis, president of Ingenico, North America. “We are pleased that our Telium2 series products have successfully met their stringent quality and security requirements, and are now an integral part of their U.S. payment solutions portfolio. Built-in product features – including EMV chip card, contactless, and NFC mobile acceptance – provide a solid foundation for Elavon to add their industry-leading security, loyalty and value-added solutions that allow customers everywhere to keep up with rapidly evolving consumer payment choices."

The companies already have successful working models with the countertop, PIN Pad and mobile and wireless terminals in Canada, Mexico, Brazil and many countries in Europe.

"Our commitment to delivering secure, innovative and scalable solutions and services is unmatched in the industry. Elavon is very selective when choosing the products that we market across our global footprint. Ingenico and their Telium2 series terminals offer a solution that is well suited to our portfolio of payment services and provides a common global product platform, backed by responsive support," said Marianne Johnson, executive vice president, Global Product & Innovation at Elavon.

Magnetic strip-based payment credit card is a technology that has been replaced in many countries around the world by EMV cards. These cards have a chip with a global standard to simplify financial transactions with better security features.

Along with NFC payment systems for mobile devices such as smartphones, it will not be long before cash becomes unnecessary for most people.