Transaction Network Services has partnered with AAPT to provide what the company believes is the only dual-carrier network for card-based payment transactions in Australia.
TNS provides secure connectivity between card acceptance devices, such as EFTPOS point of sale terminals and ATMs, and card payment processors to allow the authentication and processing of financial transactions.
TNS has previously relied solely Telstra's network to provide the infrastructure for the service, but today the company announced it had partnered to AAPT to offer a failover in case of network outages.
"AAPT will be one of two providers to us," a TNS spokesperson said. "We believe [it will be] the only dual-carrier network for carrying these transactions from point of sale or card acceptance devices in the market."
"It's a service outside of Australia that banks and [card payment] processors use religiously," the spokesperson said.
"They have dual carriers as a point of resilience, but in Australia the banks have been somewhat reluctant to embrace the dual-supplier model."