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Mar-25-2009Nokia takes stake in Obopay(topic overview)
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Teppo Paavola, head of corporate business development at Nokia has also joined the Obopay board of directors. Obopay says it will use the Nokia investment to aggressively extend its product suite and enhance its global presence. The firm launched its mobile payments service in the U.S. in 2006. It has since sought to enter other, developing, markets, moving into India last year and teaming with microfinance pioneer Grameen to launch an initiative that aims to use mobile technology to deliver banking services to a billion of the world's poorest people by 2018. Teppo Paavola, says: "This investment reflects our belief in the global potential for mobile payments. Obopay has consistently demonstrated its ability to redefine how people spend and send money and has established itself as the leader in a competitive landscape." "This investment is a landmark in the evolution of mobile payments. It underscores the global potential of mobile money by providing convenient access to money anytime, anywhere," adds Carol Realini, CEO, Obopay. [1] Given Nokia's position as the leader in mobile communications, we could not have asked for a better investor," commented Obopay CEO Carol Realini. Obopay has also named Teppo Paavola, vice president and head of Corporate Business Development at Nokia, to its board of directors. Obopay will use this minority investment to aggressively extend their product suite and enhance their global presence, as mobile devices become constantly more integrated into the daily lives of the world's 4 billion mobile consumers. Teppo Paavola, said, "This investment reflects our belief in the global potential for mobile payments. Obopay has consistently demonstrated its ability to redefine how people spend and send money and has established itself as the leader in a competitive landscape."[2]
Teppo Paavola, head of corporate business development at Nokia, will also join Obopay's board. Obopay says it will use the cash injection to "extend its product suite and enhance its global presence," according to the release. "This investment is a landmark in the evolution of mobile payments. It underscores the global potential of mobile money by providing convenient access to money anytime, anywhere.[3]
Although the size of the investment was not specified in a press release issued by the company regarding the sale, legal filings indicate it to be in the region of US$70 million. The company also announced that Nokia Vice President and Head of Corporate Business Development, Teppo Paavola, would be appointed to its board of directors. Says Paavola about the deal: "This investment reflects our belief in the global potential for mobile payments. Obopay has consistently demonstrated its ability to redefine how people spend and send money and has established itself as the leader in a competitive landscape."[4] Nokia (NYSE:NOK), the world's largest cell phone maker, announced that it has purchased a minority stake in Obopay. Obopay develops mobile payment solutions, allowing its users to spend or exchange money by receiving or sending it directly from their mobile phone using a PrePaid Mastercard (NYSE:MA), basically turning a phone into a credit/debit card with a PIN. Teppo Paavola, head of Corporate Business Development at Nokia, offered this statement, "This investment reflects our belief in the global potential for mobile payments."[5] HELSINKI (Reuters) - The world's top cell phone maker Nokia has bought a minority stake in Obopay, enabling the U.S. mobile money firm to extend its product offering and geographical presence. "This investment reflects our belief in the global potential for mobile payments," Teppo Paavola, head of Corporate Business Development at Nokia, said in a statement.[6]
The amount Nokia is ploughing into the company is pegged at around $70 million for a "minority stake" in the Silicon Valley-based company. Obopay currently operates in the U.S. and India and lets users fund their mobile account with cash or by linking up their credit card or current account. Users can then send money to any text-message enabled mobile phone and the receiver can either add it to their own Obopay account or credit it to their bank account. "This investment is a landmark in the evolution of mobile payments. It underscores the global potential of mobile money by providing convenient access to money anytime, anywhere.[7] Nokia, the world's largest mobile maker, likes the idea of turning your mobile into a credit card - and it's putting its money where its mouth is. On Wednesday the company announced it has bought a minority stake in Obopay, a mobile payment company that allows people to pay for things using their mobile phones. Mobile banking services are expected to be big over the next few years, especially in the developing world where they can allow individuals without bank accounts to transfer money and make purchases without cash.[8]
People who lack bank accounts can prepay funds into a Obopay account. "There's such a big gap in the world — there are 4 billion phones and only 1 billion bank accounts," said Carol Realini, Obopay's chief executive. She founded the company after traveling in Africa, where she noticed how ubiquitous cell phones had become, while financial systems are still rudimentary in many places. There are several competing mobile payment systems, including eBay Inc.' s PayPal Mobile in the U.S. Nokia has been building transponders into some phones that allow them to be swiped over payment terminals, much like Exxon Mobil Corp.' s Speedpass key chain fob. Cognet said this marked the first time Nokia was investing in a service like Obopay's. The investment will help Obopay speed its global expansion and invest more in its technology, Realini said.[9] The technology allows for people to make transfers by making deposits directly to a service provider, without needing a bank account. Says Obopay CEO Carol Realini: "This investment is a landmark in the evolution of mobile payments. It underscores the global potential of mobile money by providing convenient access to money anytime, anywhere.[4] REDWOOD CITY, Calif., March 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Obopay, Inc., the pioneering service provider for payments via mobile phones, today announced an investment from Nokia, the world leader in mobile communications. This investment is a resounding endorsement for Obopay's ongoing innovation in mobile money technology. "This investment is a landmark in the evolution of mobile payments. It underscores the global potential of mobile money by providing convenient access to money anytime, anywhere.[2]
Mobile phones developer Nokia has invested in U.S. mobile payments provider Obopay. Obopay will use the minority investment to extend their product suite and enhance their global presence. The amount of Nokia's investment in Obopay was not disclosed but the startup made a regulatory filing this month for the sale of up to USD 70 million in preferred stock.[10] Nokia today announced a hefty investment in Obopay, a California-based startup bringing mobile payments to the developing world. The world's largest, albeit struggling, handset maker is hoping to get a stake in the mobile financial services market ' if not through its handset business then through the technology itself. Nokia didn't disclose the amount of the investment, but Obopay made a regulatory filing earlier this month for the sale of up to $70 million in preferred stock.[11] Research firm Berg Insight expects people using mobile financial services is expected to grow on average 89 per cent per year to 913 million in 2014 from just 20 million last year. The amount of Nokia's investment in Obopay hasn't been disclosed, although the Associated Press has reported that the company is using its corporate funds and not its venture arm to fund the investment. The news agency also points out that Nokia made a regulatory filing this month for the sale of up to $70m in preferred stock.[8]
NEW YORK (AP) — Nokia Corp., the world's largest maker of cell phones, is making a large investment in a California-based startup that wants to make the mobile phone the credit card of the developing world. The amount of Nokia's investment in Obopay Inc. of Redwood City was not disclosed Wednesday, but the startup made a regulatory filing this month for the sale of up to $70 million in preferred stock.[9]
Cell phone giant Nokia Corp. took a stake in Obopay Inc., which makes software for paying via text messages. Obopay, based in Redwood City, had raised some $69 million before this investment. It didn't reveal the size of the stake Nokia took, but said that Teppo Paavolo, head of corporate business development at Nokia, will take a seat on Obopay's board of directors.[12] The filing also noted that Nokia's head of corporate business development, Teppo Paavolo, will get a seat on Obopay's board. The investment is coming from the Finnish cell phone maker's corporate funds, not its venture arms, because Nokia wants a close collaboration with Obopay, said Olivier Cognet, a business-development executive at Nokia.[9]
Redwood City-based Obopay said it also named Teppo Paavola, vice president and head of corporate business development at Espoo, Finland-based Nokia (NYSE:NOK), to its board. Obopay will use the minority investment to extend its product suite and enhance its global presence.[13] Obopay had previously raised USD 69 million in funding. Obopay has also named Teppo Paavola vice president and head of corporate business development at Nokia, to its board of directors.[10]
The filing also noted that Nokia's head of corporate business development, Teppo Paavolo, will get a seat on Obopay's board.[14]
Nokia has bought a minority stake in Obopay, which the U.S. -based mobile payments service said it will use to '''aggressively extend its product suite and enhance its global presence,''' reports mocoNews. [15] While Nokia has been to known to invest in a lot of companies, the size of the investment and buzz around mobile financial services suggests Nokia is making moves in banking to stop itself from being disintermediated, said Nick Holland, Aite Group senior analyst. With mobile payments, the handset becomes irrelevant as all transactions are done over SMS. If Nokia can't dominate the market in that respect, they want to make sure they have a stake in a company who can, he said.[11] As mobile financial services move from mobile banking to mobile payments and eventually to near-field communications (NFC), the ability to make a payment with the swipe of a phone, a territorial battle is emerging, according Holland. Financial institutions, mobile operators, card networks and vendors are all eager to quickly move into mobile financial services, especially in developing markets where the case has already been proven, he said.[11]
Carol Realini, Obopay chief executive, quoted me Gartner figures predicting just 6m users of mobile payments worldwide in 2009, but the number exploding to 100m by 2011. "You have places like India - when we started doing business there about two years ago there were 100m phones in the country, but by the middle of next year there will be 500m phones," she said. "Traditional banking and payment services don't work that well there and you have the mobile network and these solutons emerging, so it's expected to drive growth in those markets."[16] The company is likely banking on emerging markets, where current infrastructure isn't enough and where mobile growth is likely to boom in coming years. Just last year, Gartner predicted that the number of people making payments using their mobile phones globally is set to soar from 32.9 million in 2008 to 103.9 million in 2011.[3] Qualcomm backs game console for `next billion'SAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ A startup called Zeebo Inc. is betting that people in emerging markets want to play good video games just as much as people in the U.S., Western Europe and Japan do. Zeebo plans to launch its "video game console for the next billion" in Brazil next month for $199 and in other countries later this year for $179. It was developed using the cell phone technology of Qualcomm Inc., the San Diego company best known for its mobile phone chips. Got an expired TV converter box coupon? Try againNEW YORK (AP) _ People who got digital TV converter box coupons but let them expire can now apply for new ones.[14]
Obopay operates in the U.S. and India and allows users to send money to any text message-enabled cell phone. The sender can fund their account with cash or by linking up their credit card or current account; the receiver can sign up for an Obopay account or have the money directly transferred to their bank account. Obopay charges 25 cents to send any amount up to $1,000. (It costs nothing to receive.)[3] One report noted Obopay had previously raised $69 million, most of it from venture capital firms. Nokia isn't making the investment through its venture arm, though, instead making a direct injection to closely work with Silicon Valley's Obopay. Obopay, which offers service in the U.S. as well as India, allows users to transfer money electronically using cell-phone applications such as text messages.[17] Nokia's investment builds on the $69 million Obopay has already raised, primarily from venture capital firms, as well as $7 million from Qualcomm, which acquired mobile banking company Firethorn in 2007.[11]
It's payday for Obopay Inc. The world's largest cell-phone maker, Nokia Corp. (NYSE:NOK), is making a significant investment in Obopay, a mobile service provider that basically turns a cell phone into an interactive banking card.[17] California-based m-payments outfit Obopay has received a major investment from mobile phone giant Nokia, which it will use to move into new markets.[1]
Obopay offers services that let consumers and businesses purchase, pay, and transfer money through any mobile phone using Obopay's mobile application, text message, mobile web, or Obopay.com.[10] As the first mobile payment service created exclusively for the mobile phone, only Obopay works on any mobile phone and any carrier to empower consumers and businesses with the convenience of mobile payments.[2]
Paavola said the investment "reflects our belief in the global potential for mobile payments. Obopay has consistently demonstrated its ability to redefine how people spend and send money and has established itself as the leader in a competitive landscape."[13] Nokia, the world'''s largest producer of mobile handsets, has made a substantial investment in U.S. based mobile payment solution provider Obopay Inc.[4] It's been announced that Nokia is investing in mobile payments service provider Obopay.[7]
Nokia has been a big believer in using phones as credit cards or wallets. The company has used near field communications technology to allow some phones to be swiped at cash registers and subway turnstiles to pay for things, but this is the first time the company has invested in an payment service such as Obopay.[8] The amount gives Nokia a minority stake in the company, which specializes in payments via mobile phones.[3] The amount, understood to be in the region of $70m, is being put in by Nokia itself rather than its venture arm and gives it a minority stake in the Silicon Valley company.[16]
A day after Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) said it was considering the sale of its minority stake in Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Ltd. (ICBC), American Express (NYSE:AXP) announced that it may sell its holdings in ICBC after the mandatory lockup period ends, depending on market conditions.[5]
The amount of Nokia's investment in Obopay Inc. of Redwood City was not disclosed Wednesday, but the startup made a regulatory filing this month for the sale of up to $70 million in preferred stock. [14] Reuters noted Berg Insight expects the number of people using mobile financial services to grow to 913 million in 2014 from just 20 million last year. If consumers catch on and Nokia can tap much of the market, perhaps it could help the firm weather a turbulent economy that forced it to announce 1,700 layoffs.[17] Research firm Berg Insight expects the number of users of mobile financial services to grow to 913 million in 2014 from 20 million last year, reports Reuters.[15]
The standard is IP-centric, reducing voice to 'just another' application and voice as a VoIP service is expected to be available from 2012/2013. Until then, and probably for many years thereafter, traditional circuit-switched voice will be offered over GSM. Mobile operators have their high- priced legacy international voice revenues in particular to lose, whereas Apple and Nokia may speed up transition to VoIP. Now, incumbent operators including AT&T and BT are testing the VoIP waters. [18]
Gerhard Romen, head of NFC market development at Nokia (NFC is the Near Field Communication contactless payments technology), says phones have become easier to use over the past five years for payments.[16] Nokia (NYSE: NOK), based in Espoo, Finland, has long advocated the development of cell phones to pay for things. Obopay takes its name from the obol, a coin used in Ancient Greece. Dead people were often buried with an obol coin in their mouths so they could pay for the ferry ride across the river into the underworld.[12] Obopay's service, available in the U.S. and India, lets people pay each other through text messages or other cell phone applications.[9]
Carol Realini started Obopay after visiting Africa and seeing widespread use of cell phones in poor places without formal banking systems.[12]
Obopay charges 25 cents to send any amount up to $1,000 and nothing to receive it. The company says it will use the cash injection to extend its product suite and enhance its global presence.[16] JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM) filed a lawsuit Tuesday with the U.S. bankruptcy court in Delaware, against Washington Mutual (OTC:WAMUQ.PK). The lawsuit comes three days after Washington Mutual said it was suing the FDIC for undervaluing the thrift's banking operations, awarding the company only $1.9 billion for its sale, which the regulator arranged last September. JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM) said it was suing WaMu to be sure that it wasn't losing any of its interests in the company's banking operations.[5]
No disks needed for startup's streamed video gamesSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Music and movies can be streamed over the Internet, so why not video games? A startup founded by technology entrepreneur Steve Perlman says it has developed a technology to deliver video games on demand, an idea that threatens to eventually take consoles out of the equation. Google's top execs keep $1 salaries amid turmoilSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Google Inc. Chief Executive Eric Schmidt and co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin maintained their traditional salaries of $1 last year even as the value of their combined stakes in the Internet search leader plunged by nearly $26 billion. The paltry paychecks, disclosed Tuesday in a regulatory filing, come as no surprise because Schmidt, Page and Brin have insisted on their annual salaries remaining at $1 since Google went public in 2004. Google draws upon rival ideas with search changesSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Google Inc. prides itself on setting trends, but it appears to be copying some of its smaller rivals with the latest refinements to the way it displays Internet search results. After months of testing, Google tweaked its technology Tuesday to occasionally display longer descriptions of Web sites in response to search requests consisting of several words.[14] The Latest Advancements in SSL Technology Learn about the latest in Web site security, SSL, and how it can benefit your business.[3]
As the site grows, some of the businesses scrutinized on Yelp are turning the tables and griping about the company itself. The complaints highlight an irony for Web sites that stimulate online communities and let users speak their minds. As the sites make the world more transparent, giving people the power to discuss everything from a great pizza to a bad date, the sites' own transparency is often questionable, as consumers and businesses struggle to understand how they operate.[14]
Onlive, a company that has been in business for only seven years is about to enter the gaming console market in a big way. Using a wireless controller and a "cloud" attachment that is only slightly bigger than an Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone, users can connect to any TV and most personal computers, even those with low performance or lacking graphics cards.[5]
Obopay has pioneered technology making mobile payments and money transfers possible, focusing on solutions geared towards the developing world. [4] Obopay is bringing mobile payments to more consumers through industry-first alliances and is headquartered in Redwood City, California.[2]
We keep busy payments professionals across the globe up-to-date. Our comprehensive news service covers topics such as online and mobile payments, and much more. We offer many different options allowing you easy access to our daily news coverage, such as emailed headlines, general or specific news feeds, website access, journal subscriptions, or customised solutions.[10] "Security has got better, display capabilities and storage has improved as have the networks. The market is picking up speed and there are new entrants, so we have an interesting time ahead of us," he said. Other major companies looking at cashing in on mobile payments include Vodafone, which struck a deal with Western Union in December, and eBay's Paypal, which joined the GlobalPlatform standards body this month.[16]
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms.[6]
Consensus estimates are for EPS of 50 cents on revenues of $98.0 million. Lazard Capital cited positive remarks from management on demand, positive channel checks and customer pipeline as reasons for its forecast adjustment. They added that recent checks confirm speculation that Digital River will win contracts for powering downloads for Research in Motion's (NASDAQ:RIMM) upcoming Blackberry application store. Lazard says that their recent checks indicate increased demand environment during Q1 as a number of software developers, who had held off on releasing their new apps during Q4 due to broader economic uncertainties, are expected to release these applications during Q1.[5] In an effort to continue to weather the financial markets crisis, HSBC Holding (NYSE:HBC), Europe's largest bank measured by market cap, announced plans to cut approximately 1,200 employees in the UK. According to comments made by the bank's spokesman Mark Hemingway, the cuts will take place over a 12-month time period and locations in Leamington, England and Newport, South Wales, will be shuttered. HSBC is raising $18.4 billion (USD) in its largest rights offering ever, in order to boost its capital position.[5]
Given Nokia's position as the leader in mobile communications, we could not have asked for a better investor," commented Obopay CEO Carol Realini. [3]
SOURCES
1. Finextra: Nokia invests in Obopay
2. Obopay, Inc. :: Nokia Invests in Obopay
3. Nokia invests $70m in Obopay mobile service provider | Between the Lines | ZDNet.com
4. Nokia invests in mobile payment solution company Obopay
5. News Briefs - Comtex SmarTrend Alert
6. Nokia invests in mobile money firm Obopay | Technology | Reuters
7. Nokia invests in mobile payment company Obopay
8. Nokia gets out its wallet for mobile payments - Hardware - Breaking Business and Technology News at silicon.com
9. The Associated Press: Nokia seeks gold in mobile payments startup Obopay
10. The Paypers. Insights in payments.
11. Nokia bets on mobile payments with Obopay investment | Telephony Online
12. Nokia takes stake in Obopay - San Francisco Business Times:
13. Nokia takes minority stake in Obopay - Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal:
14. AP Technology NewsBrief at 12:16 p.m. EDT
15. Vendors and Markets: Nokia Invests in Obopay
16. FT.com | Tech Blog | Nokia sends $70m mobile payment to Obopay
17. Nokia buys stake in Obopay hoping to ride next 'killer app' (Corporate Dealmaker)
18. Page not Found on Telecompaper Website
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