Masabi » mTicketing

First Great Western Launches Masabi’s First Windows Phone 7 mTicketing App

josh — Wed, 23 May 2012 11:12:23 +0000

first great western launches masabi’s first windows phone 7 mTicketing app

We’re delighted to announce our first Windows Phone 7 (WP7) mTicketing app for UK Rail, in conjunction with First Great Western, has hit the Marketplace. It’s free to download and boasts live train running and platform information as well as the ability to securely buy tickets straight from your phone.

Producing applications for WP7 has been a real passion-project for our designers and developers alike, and we’re really pleased with how it’s turned out.

The design follows the WP7 panoramic styling, allowing users to scroll horizontally through the various screens. The homepage tiles allow users to quickly navigate through the app – booking tickets, checking times and monitoring train progress in real time.

Our developers have been working on Windows Phone 7 for a while, even creating and submitting our ‘Oblongs!’ app earlier this year to test the process and have produced a quick and slick experience that demonstrates the power of the platform.

So what are you waiting for? Windows Phone 7 Users can get the app now here.

MBTA and Masabi to Launch First Smartphone Rail Ticketing System in the U.S.

Will — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 08:49:30 +0000

MBTA and Masabi to Launch First Smartphone Rail Ticketing System in the U.S.

Apps will allow Commuter Rail customers to purchase and display tickets on iPhone, Android and Blackberry

BOSTON, MA – 23^rd April 2012 – Today, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) and Masabi US Ltd, the transit mobile ticketing pioneer, jointly announce that they will be bringing mobile ticketing to MBTA commuter rail riders this fall. With applications for iPhone, Android, and Blackberry, customers will be able to seamlessly purchase commuter rail tickets and passes. Once tickets are purchased, customers will be able to use and display directly via their phone screen.

“MassDOT and the MBTA are striving to bring our customers convenience without added costs. We are delivering just that with this project and this technology,” said MassDOT Secretary and CEO Richard A. Davey.

“With this new and innovative approach, we are putting a ticket machine right in the palms of our customers’ hands,” said Acting MBTA General Manager Jonathan Davis.

Less than half of MBTA’s 140 Commuter Rail stations have fare vending machines, forcing many customers to pay for tickets on board. But that will soon change as riders will be able to purchase tickets via credit or debit cards directly from their phones. Monthly pass holders will be able to seamlessly link a plastic CharlieCard to their pass allowing them “tap-in” instead of using magnetic tickets for the MBTA subway and bus systems.

The new solution will help the MBTA reduce costs by eliminating the need for additional vending machines and lowering cash handling costs. To help combat fare evasion, all mobile tickets will have barcodes allowing for validation. Throughout the pilot program, smart phone-equipped train conductors will be checking tickets to ensure their validity. Masabi will provide a comprehensive mTicketing solution including; consumer-facing applications, backend servers, payment integration and scanning/validation software for train conductors.

“By placing a personalized ticket machine in the pocket of commuters, they can now buy tickets wherever they are, faster than ever before,” said Giacomo Biggiero, Director of Masabi US Ltd. “MBTA will also see significant benefits in terms of reducing costly cash handling charges and the cost of additional ticket machines. We are delighted to be working with them to launch our first mTicketing system in the U.S.”

In the coming months, the MBTA will be inviting customers to participate in designing the new applications via focus groups and a small group pilot which will roll out in late summer. The full deployment to all MBTA customers is expected this fall.

All transactions are secured using the award-winning encryptME security system that has been validated to U.S. Government standards.

-ends-

About MBTA

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority is the United States 5^th largest transit agency serving approximately 1.3 million passenger trips each weekday. The MBTA operates Subway, Light Rail, Bus, Commuter Rail, paratransit, and Ferry Boat services across eastern Massachusetts.

About Masabi US Ltd

Masabi US Ltd is the transit mobile ticketing pioneer, bringing Masabi’s award-winning ‘Ticket Machine in Your Pocket’ applications to the North American market. It signals the end of ticket lines by allowing passengers to quickly and securely buy and display tickets on their smartphone. The company’s technology also allows transit agencies to transform their passengers’ travel experience while also dramatically expanding sales capacity without significantly increasing costs.

Masabi is backed by m8 Capital and the technology is in use by over 11 UK transit agencies and retail brands including; Virgin Trains, Chiltern Railways, CrossCountry Trains and thetrainline.com. For further information see www.masabi.com/us

Media Contacts:

Joe Pesaturo for MBTA

Tel: 617.222.5697

E-Mail: Jpesaturo@mbta.com

Temono for Masabi
Stephanie Ross
Tel: +44 (0) 207 089 8894
Email: stephanie.ross@temono.com

Masabi Video Interview – mTicketing Revolution on Track

Will — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 10:33:19 +0000

masabi video interview – mTicketing revolution on track

A video interview with Masabi CPO, Giacomo Biggiero, was recently published on airrail NEWS.

Appearing alongside Jonathan Williams from Cubic Transportation Systems, Giacomo talks about Masabi’s successes in launching our mTicketing technology in the UK, as well as how mobile innovations such as NFC could transform the passenger experience in the future.

Masabi Developer Team Invades Mobile World Congress

Will — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 17:00:48 +0000

masabi developer team invades mobile world congress

It’s always nice to get out of the office from time to time, and what better way to do it than by going to Barcelona! Masabi’s development team flew out to Barcelona in February to attend Mobile World Congress 2012. The visit was designed to offer the Masabi developers the opportunity to meet people from all over the world working in mobile, see how the commercial side of the mobile industry operates, and attend developer meetings to see what’s on the horizon for handsets and apps, and this is how we got on…

arriving in barcelona

We flew out to Barcelona on Monday afternoon and arrived safely at our hotel in time for a delicious meal at Sinatra’s near Las Ramblas, during which we discussed what our ideal handset would be like. Unfortunately, we could not make the show in time to watch our CEO, Ben Whitaker, take to the main stage to talk on how mobiles apps are changing the world, speaking in a panel alongside representatives from the FT, Telefónica, Tripadvisor, Qualcomm and others. Ben also made it into the Show Daily on the Wednesday of the event. Click here and turn to p.14 to view the article online.

inside the show

The next day, we set out for the Congress, navigating our way across the city on the metro. Unsurprisingly, the show this year was bigger than ever, with around 60,000 attendees from over 200 countries, and all of the best-known mobile brands were drawing crowds onto their vibrant exhibition stands. Although, Apple was notable in its absence.

As tradition dictates, Tuesday is the busiest day of the event, with plenty of keynotes, seminars and developer conferences to occupy the masses. After a bit of queuing (which we sadly could not bust with our mTicketing apps!), the team was granted entry to the BlackBerry developer conference, where we learned about all the great new features planned for BB10 and the new Playbooks. We were especially intrigued by the variety of runtimes that will be supported on the upcoming BB10, making it an incredibly versatile development platform. As well as featuring the existing Java and native BB10 runtimes, BlackBerry’s new platform will include HTML5 support and a runtime for Android apps!

To top off a great talk from BlackBerry, we were all given a free Playbook!

In the afternoon, a handful of us managed to get into the Samsung developer conference. They had a big presentation on the variety of things you can do with the stylus, a gadget they have brought back into fashion with the Galaxy Note, but what we really found impressive was the great looks and almost Android-like graphics displayed by their new range of Bada handsets.

amazing mobile technology

Later on in the day, we had a wander around the Fira to check out some of the technology on show from the big names in mobile. Here’s a rundown of the main things:

Nokia – showcased a 41 Megapixel camera, capturing amazing quality photos on such a tiny handset.
BlackBerry – great speaker presentations on the stand, including one from Ben on transport mTicketing as the catalyst for mCommerce.
Android – the stand was as colourful and fun as ever, with app developers, a slide, free smoothies and even a robot that made you a customised cover for your Nexus.
Samsung Galaxy Note – a huge screen and amazing battery life and great versatility make this Ben’s new favourite phone.
Sony Playstation Vita – a device more powerful than the PS3 and it fits inside your hand. It can also run augmented reality games and map your face onto your avatar using the front mounted camera.
Windows Phone 7 – a cool competition from Microsoft saw you race your phone against their Windows Phones to see which was faster at completing certain tasks, and if you managed to beat the Windows Phone, you won €100. A quick look at the results board showed only about two people managed to beat the WP7 phones for speed. (Unhappy losers were thankfully consoled with a free t-shirt.)
NFC - lots of companies were demonstrating NFC as a centrepiece this year. The transaction times have improved and the technology is gaining more traction in payment and transport.
Quad core processors – incredibly rich and detailed gaming graphics running on the latest smartphones were on display on all the big handset manufacturer stands to show the power of the new quad cores processors that have entered the market.
Special mention goes to a Vancouver based company for building an awesome Heads Up Display device that fits inside your snowboarding goggles and gives you readouts on your speed, location, etc. and links to your phone via Bluetooth so you can play music and answer calls while knee deep in powder.

culture vultures

We rounded off a great stay in Barcelona with a meal in an authentic Spanish tapas restaurant and a trip to the Sagrada Família – the iconic cathedral designed by Gaudí that has been under construction since 1882.

The visit to MWC was a really edifying and valuable experience for the whole team. We got to see a side of the industry that we would not normally be involved in, and we also got a first-hand view of some of the upcoming technology that could influence our work in the near future. Moreover, it was a fantastic opportunity to meet and network with other companies and developers doing fascinating things in mobile, and we hope to follow up on some interesting leads!

Get in touch to learn more about our team trips and other developer opportunities at Masabi.

Masabi, Chiltern Railways & Atos Scoop Rail Business Award

Will — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 11:09:53 +0000

masabi, chiltern railways & atos scoop rail business award

A concerted effort from Chiltern Railways, Atos and Masabi saw the companies claim victory at the recent Rail Business Awards 2012 in the Information Technology Excellence category. The accolade was awarded for the trio’s work in delivering the first ever live mTicketing system for a franchised Train Operating Company, which lets customers buy tickets on their phone using the Chiltern Railways app and travel straight away.

The Rail Business Awards is one of the UK rail industry’s most prestigious awards ceremonies, and recognises excellence for business, technology & engineering, safety & security, stations & trains, creativity, and individual achievement.

Rail Business Awards judge Tony King praised the market credibility of the group’s mTicketing scheme, which was launched in May 2011, and also commended the fact that it is available on both smartphones and regular mobiles, thereby providing the best experience possible to the largest number of customers.

Here’s what our very own trophy looks like:

Click here to read the full article on the award win.

Thanks to the Rail Business Awards 2012 for organising such a great night!

If you would like to learn more about our mTicketing work with Chiltern Railways and Atos, feel free to contact us or post a comment below.

Masabi CEO Named as Top Transport Innovator

Will — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 15:24:24 +0000

masabi ceo named as top transport innovator

Masabi CEO Ben Whitaker was named by New Transit Magazine as one of the transport industry’s most influential innovators in their Power List 2012: Innovators & Pioneers, published on Tuesday 7th February.

The list honours certain individuals across the transport sector who are introducing new ideas from an inventive technological or entrepreneurial standpoint, as well as those whose activity stands out as being beyond the significance of their own specific role within an organisation. Here’s an extract from the article on what they had to say about Ben:

“…[T]he efforts of Ben Whitaker, founder and chief executive of Masabi have helped revolutionise the way in which rail tickets are purchased and used via mobile phones. His system is now in use by half the [UK] Train Operating Companies.”

Click here to read the full article.

If you are interested in finding out more about the work Masabi has done to revolutionise the transport industry, please contact us or leave a comment below.

A Guide to mTicketing – Transport Ticketing Webinar

Will — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:27:58 +0000

a guide to mTicketing – transport ticketing webinar

Masabi’s CEO Ben Whitaker presented a live webinar about mTicketing technology on Wednesday last week (11th Jan) to hundreds of transport industry leaders. If you missed it live, you can still catch Ben and the rest of the presenters by clicking on the link below.

Click here to watch the webinar.

You can also find out more about mTicketing by meeting us at Transport Ticketing 2012 or by emailing us on contact@masabi.com

Masabi at Transport Ticketing 2012

Will — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 17:16:05 +0000

mticketing takes centre stage at flagship event

Transport Ticketing 2012 kicks off the New Year as the first major event in the Masabi calendar and it really is a ‘must attend’ for those interested in mTicketing. This year, Masabi is exhibiting, speaking and sponsoring, and we’re looking forward to meeting some of the transport industry’s most influential figures to discuss the latest developments in mTicketing technology.

“As increasing amounts of people use public transport every day, it has become critical to look at new means of ticketing which are cost-effective, scalable and – above all – user-friendly. Masabi has pioneered a mobile ticketing revolution in transport, proving themselves to be world leaders in the next generation of ticketing and fare collection. Make sure you join us at Transport Ticketing 2012 in January to gain practical insight into the new technologies that are changing the global ticketing landscape.” – Tim Headley, Marketing Manager, Clarion Events.

webinar – the guide to mobile ticketing

In the build up to the event, at 15:00 GMT on Wednesday 11th January, Masabi CEO Ben Whitaker will join Thomas Ableman from Chiltern Railways and Stephen Stonall Henningsen from Movia in a free webinar providing an overview of mTicketing and the potential it holds for transport operators. Following the presentations, there will be an opportunity to participate in a live Q&A session with Ben and the other speakers. Click here to view the mTicketing webinar agenda and sign up free of charge.

mTicketing presentations at transport ticketing 2012

At the event Ben will be speaking on a panel debating the merits of smartcard ticketing, alongside; Nigel Eggleton, Veolia TransDev Blazefield; Chris Shoukry, The ALCO Group; Mike Cowan, MasterCard; and Mick Davies, LASSeO. You can catch Ben and the rest of the panel at 16:00 on Thursday 26th January. Click here to see a detailed agenda for the talk and the rest of the event.

Earlier on that day, at 09:50, Chiltern Railways Marketing Manager, Thomas Ableman, will present a talk entitled ‘The UK’s first mTicketing scheme for railways – realise the financial potential of mobile ticketing’. The presentation will discuss the business case behind the mTicketing technology developed in partnership with Masabi & Atos that is now live on the train operator’s routes, as well as the key steps towards a practical implementation of mTicketing on transport networks.

exhibition and demonstrations

Masabi will also be exhibiting at the event and will be demonstrating a range of mTicketing services now live across multiple transport operators. Feel free to stop by and see our technology in action!

We’re really looking forward to Transport Ticketing 2012 and hope to see you there!

If you’re going to be at the event and would like to meet, please contact us to schedule a meeting.

Transport Ticketing 2012 takes place in London, 24th-26th January – click here to register for the event.

Mobile Marketing Magazine Celebrates mTicketing on Chiltern Railways

Will — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 11:48:32 +0000

mobile marketing magazine celebrates mticketing on chiltern railways

The mTicketing solution pioneered by Masabi, Chiltern Railways & Atos appears in the December 2011 issue of Mobile Marketing Magazine. The feature follows our success at the Effective Mobile Marketing awards, which took place in November. You can read the article below:

Open publication – Free publishing – More mobile

Top Mobile Travel Tip from First TransPennine Express

Will — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 11:14:03 +0000

top mobile travel tip from first transpennine express

First TransPennine Express have just released a new video showcasing their various way in which passengers can get information about train journeys. The first top piece of advice they give is to download the FTExpress mobile app to get train times and buy tickets on your phone. They also mention that “…it’ll work on your smartphone, BlackBerry or even on your old Nokia style phone!“, so this really is an awesome tip that almost all passengers with a mobile can benefit from.

We think the video is a great way to let passengers know how to get journey information and buy tickets wherever, whenever.

To get the app, text ‘TPEAPP‘ to 86688 or search for ‘TPExpress’ on your device’s app store.