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Archive for the ‘m-Commerce’ Category

TickeTXT: How NOT to buy a Movie Ticket via Text

Tuesday, August 1st, 2006

Last week was my first attempt at using the TickeTXT service of Smart in SM Megamall. TickeTXT allows Smart subscribers to buy cinema tickets through texting and Smart Money. I gave it a try and was half-expecting that the service will fail. I just wanted to know how it will fail. I was ...

Globe’s G-Pass for the MRT

Monday, July 31st, 2006

G-Pass made it's debut last Friday at the MRT stations from Cubao to Ayala. I tried it out myself. I'd say it's pleasantly better than I was expecting. Here's some additional info that people should know about ... What is G-Pass? An alternative way to enter the MRT using a chip instead of ...

G-Cash and 2Go is a No-Go

Friday, July 28th, 2006

In September 2005, I found out that LBC withdrew their G-Cash partnership with Globe. Here’s another G-Cash fallout: 2Go, the courier delivery service of Aboitiz, no longer conducts G-Cash transactions.  Once upon a time, 2Go offered Cash-out services (convert G-Cash to Cash). I spoke to 2Go staff at Megamall and they said the ...

The way to go: Why they haven’t gone that way

Thursday, July 27th, 2006

(Follow-up to m-Commerce in the Philippines: The way to go) Yesterday, I proposed a way to make G-Cash as ubiquitous as AutoloadMax. Basically, Globe just needs to apply the same distribution principle of AutoloadMax on G-Cash. Then, there'll be 800,000 points of cash-in/cash-out throughout the country. Why hasn’t this solution been implemented? My ...

m-Commerce in the Philippines: The way to go

Wednesday, July 26th, 2006

I spoke to an American development finance consultant last April - Mark Pickens from The Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP). In that conversation, I told him that until now, there is still no viable and compelling business model for G-Cash and Smart Money merchants. That is one reason ...

G-Cash is offering free cash-in

Tuesday, July 25th, 2006

Globe (and its partner merchants) usually charges P10 or 1% of amount for each conversion from cash to G-Cash (referred to as “cash-in”). I always thought this service charge didn’t make sense and it’s always been my position that this cash-in service charge should be scrapped. An advertisement came out ...

G-Pass: Use your Cellphone to Enter the MRT

Monday, July 24th, 2006

Finally, some indication of how the MRT will enable commuters to use their cellphones to enter the MRT stations. The MRT ticketing system is up for a technology upgrade that will allow commuters to reload their MRT tickets using their cellphone. So says an article in the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) ...

G-nius - The G-Cash contest reloaded

Tuesday, June 27th, 2006

I saw a poster of G-nius, a contest of Globe for students. The contest calls for students to create innovative uses of G-Cash. Some of the criteria: has to be easy to implement cost-effective creative This is not the first time Globe came out with this G-nius contest. But you know, I never ...

Where in the world is Smart Padala?

Monday, March 20th, 2006

Got this in my email box: Magandang umaga po, san po matatagpuan dito sa jeju city south Korea ang opisina ng smart padala remittance partners abroad? please reply as soon as possible... Sorry, I don't have that information either. I get these kinds of message every so often. Filipinos in other countries looking ...

More G-Cash experiences

Thursday, March 9th, 2006

Here’s a story I gathered from my colleague who was trying out G-Cash. She went to a National Bookstore branch in Glorietta, she wanted to make a purchase using G-Cash. When she was at the cashier, she was told that the particular branch was no longer accepting G-Cash payments. (Note, ...