Visa has rebranded its V.me digital wallet with the goal of creating a simpler online payments experience for customers.
Visa Checkout is replacing V.me, which was introduced in Australia only eight months ago.
As with V.me, Visa Checkout users pay by logging into their digital wallets and choosing a card and shipping address that they have previously registered. The wallet can hold more cards than just Visa, including MasterCard and American Express. It can be used for international purchases, and is supported by every financial institution in Australia.
However, it is not the same wallet as before, said Greg Storey, head of Visa Checkout in Australia.
“Visa Checkout is a completely re-engineered payment experience," he said. "The V.me platform was built three years ago and in that time eCommerce and mobile commerce have grown significantly. We’ve made the consumer payment experience more simple and we have made it easier for merchants to integrate."
"We looked at every pixel and every aspect of the flow to bring even more simplicity to online payment with Visa Checkout.”
V.me launched with several online merchants aboard including JB Hi-Fi, Moshtix and Lorna Jane, and Visa said it will transition to Visa Checkout “in the coming months".
Event Cinemas has announced it will be the first merchant in Australia to support Visa Checkout.
Kristie Atkins, director of sales for Event’s owner Amalgamated Holdings, said the company has adopted the Visa payments system to support growing revenue from mobile ticket sales.
Read more: Braintree takes on PayPal for e-commerce payments in Australia
“The fastest growing way in which our customers buy tickets is on their mobile,” she said. “Our customers pick their movie, session time, their seats and even candy bar treats on our mobile website and the Event Cinemas App. Completing their transaction with us quickly, in a trusted and hassle-free way is critical to our business.”
Visa is far from the only company with a digital wallet. A variety of companies from different industries have announced or released wallets, including MasterCard, PayPal, Coles, Eftpos, Commonwealth Bank and Bendigo Bank.
In addition to Visa Checkout, Event Cinemas also accepts PayPal and MasterCard MasterPass digital wallets for checkout.
Australian consumers who had already signed up for V.me will be moved automatically to Visa Checkout today and can sign in with existing credentials, Visa said.
Adam Bender covers telco and enterprise tech issues for Computerworld and is the author of dystopian sci-fi novels We, The Watched and Divided We Fall. Follow him on Twitter: @WatchAdam
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