Orange UK unveils mobile ticketing trial, eyes nationwide service

Orange UK has partnered with rail and bus operator Stagecoach to trial a mobile ticketing service. If successful, the Cambridgeshire-based trial could lead to a nationwide rollout across select bus and rail services in 2013.

Orange UK partnered with Stagecoach.

Those involved with the trial can receive, store and validate tickets using handsets provided by Orange that run its NFC service Quick Tap.

Everything Everywhere CMO Gerry McQuade said in a statement: "We've already started a new movement in the way we make payments and receive retail rewards on the high street, so this really is the next step--providing customers with additional simplicity and convenience to help improve their public transport experience."

Results of the trial will be monitored by the UK Department for Transport and will involve measuring the level of customer convenience and technological effectiveness. The trial complies with the government's aim of enabling most journeys by public transport to use smart ticketing by the end of 2014.

Stagecoach group finance director Martin Griffiths said: "Once this trial is complete, we will carry out a review of the findings and assess the potential to expand the scheme further for our passengers."

A recent study from Informa Telecoms and Media forecast that sales of NFC-enabled devices are expected to accelerate from 2013 onwards. Total NFC handset shipments are expected to grow from almost 44 million in 2011 to over 630 million in 2015, representing 40 per cent of all new handsets, up from 3.5 per cent right now.

For more:
- see this release
- see this Mobile Today article
- see this Telecoms.com article

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