From now until November 2008 MasterCard Canada is testing their version of Mobile Payments via cell phone. The way it works is you tap your phone onto a special receiver located near the cash register. If the amount of the transaction is under $50 you don’t have to sign anything. In actuality the cell phone itself does not appear to do the transmitting of any data – rather it uses Near Field Communication (NFC) which requires that you tap your phone on the receiver at point of purchase. Transmission range is a maximum of a few inches – so the fear of mistakenly paying for someone’s groceries in the supermarket next door is reduced. To use your phone it must support both NFC and Over The Air configuration. A similar trial was concluded in New York City in April 2007.

MasterCard Canada – Mobile Payments Trial