Cingular to Launch Mobile Banking in 2007

[Janak Parekh]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=technologyNews&storyid=2006-11-15T060540Z_01_N14348236_RTRUKOC_0_US-TELECOMS-CINGULAR-BANKING.xml&src=rss' target='_blank'>http://today.reuters.com/news/artic...ING.xml&src=rss</a><br /><br /></div><i>"Cingular Wireless, the No. 1 U.S. cellular operator, said on Wednesday it is talking with banks about letting its customers manage their money by cell phone as part of a push to expand phone use beyond talking. The wireless venture of AT&amp;T Inc and BellSouth Corp. said a wireless banking application it is testing would let customers of participating banks view account balances, transfer funds and pay bills on their cell phones. Spokesman Mark Siegel said Cingular hoped to launch the application commercially in early 2007."</i><br /><br />This is both good and bad, methinks. At least a carrier is pushing more banks to set up mobile banking. On the other hand, will Cingular get exclusives with banks? Or will each carrier have a different banking system? This sounds recipe for confusion and annoying balkanization.

[Paragon]

This is both good and bad, methinks. At least a carrier is pushing more banks to set up mobile banking. On the other hand, will Cingular get exclusives with banks? Or will each carrier have a different banking system? This sounds recipe for confusion and annoying balkanization.

Hmmmm....I agree with the concerns here, Janak. I'm not so sure that we need carriers planting themselves between us and the bank. What is to be gained? I've been doing banking on my WM device for ages, so have many others. There have been problems in accessing some banks using PIE, but that problem seems to be solved by using Opera. I've not heard of anyone not being able to access their bank using Opera. Here in Canada most, if not all, major banks have WAP access to online banking.

Perhaps this is a first step towards using phones and mobile devices to make direct payments....point your device at the machine and the payment is automatically made. I think it's probably a supreme law from above that carrier must get a piece of that pie somehow. ;)

Dave

[bkerrins]

I want the mobile phone to work like a debit card. I can point my (otherwise useless) IR port at a vending machine or the point of sale device, then type in my PIN and buy groceries or soda without ever needing to carry a wallet again.

[x51vuser]

and what else ?
auto sync with money 2007 ?
new service - new fee ;-)

[Jason Lee]

I, like Dave, have been doing online banking from my PPC phone for years. My banks site works great in PIE.
So nothing new here for me except a new service fee from the providers...

[Paragon]

I, like Dave

Thanks, Jason. That's very kind of you. I like you too. ;)

[ddhsoftware]

What I've been waiting for is something much better than a browser experience- no reason it can't happen if a bank would allow it. Think about it:

An app that when you launch prompts you for a password. No navigating favorites waiting for pages to load, etc. When you log in, it shows you unpaid bills and you simply check the ones you want to pay. Options for bank transfers, account balances, etc. Seems like a great tool, but would have to be done like a standalone app with a web connection to really be user friendly, one handed, and quick.

I like most others can use PIE to do my banking, but I'd rather wait until I'm home in front of my PC to do it, because the experience is not as good. If the experience is actually better than a PC experience, then who wouldn't want it?!

[Jason Lee]

I, like Dave

Thanks, Jason. That's very kind of you. I like you too. ;)

hehe nice quote. are you sure your don't work for the media? New York Times? NBC? ;)

:mrgreen:

[Paragon]

I, like Dave

Thanks, Jason. That's very kind of you. I like you too. ;)

hehe nice quote. are you sure your don't work for the media? New York Times? NBC? ;)

:mrgreen:

LOL....if I did I would have removed the comma. :)

[Brad Adrian]

The ability to perform simple banking functions with a mobile phone has been around for years, especially in Europe. But, most people don't have a terribly pressing need to do simple things like check their account balances on their phones.

What is REALLY needed is a better method for making mobile payments.

In any case, I think Cingular may be barking up the wrong tree here. Carriers need to be involved in making sure that certain functionality exists, but the relationship between a consumer and bank doesn't leave a whole lot of room for a third party like a carrier.

[BoxWave]

In Japan they have phones that you can use to pay for things, like a credit/debit card. You guys think that we will be seeing this is the near future? Maybe this is just the first step?

Chris-
BoxWave Accessories (http://www.boxwave.com)