With the growth of mobile computing, many companies have started targeting smartphones as a way to increase sales of their ecommerce products. The problem is that users still find purchasing an item on their phones to be a little cumbersome, and this causes merchants to lose out on sales just before the point of completion.
Anyone who has ever sat on a picnic bench at a fair grounds trying to feverishly type in their credit card info into their iPhone on Ticket Master’s website while the timer keeps running out knows how frustrating it can be.
To solve this dilemma, the guys at Lumber Labs have developed something they are calling card.io, which allows developers of smartphone apps to add a credit card capture feature to their program.
Optical Card Scanner
Essentially, when someone is making a purchase through a company’s app, instead of having to manually enter their credit card data, they can hold their phone over their card and snap a picture of all the important stuff. The program will then automatically fill in the numbers and the user is quickly on their way to checkout.
Mobile ecommerce is still in it’s infancy due to the limitations and frustration level that many consumers experience when computing on their phones. But with mobile computing as a whole on a steady rise, technologies like Card.io are sure to pave the way.
Card.io is currently being designed for developers to add to their current projects for the iPhone marketplace. If the initial launch proves successful, expansion into the Android and possibly Windows markets is sure to follow.
For businesses interested in adding this feature to their iPhone apps, they can request early access to the program.
The pricing is fairly straightforward with a $0.15 per scan charge and a free $30 credit for new sign ups. However, it is unclear if that means a completed transaction or just a scan. The card.io website is fairly sparse, but that is to be expected for a service still in beta. Contact and pricing information can be found on the site, and it is recommended to confirm the details with them before signing up.
I am anxious to see where this technology takes us in the coming years. The next time I am sitting on a picnic table trying to get last minute tickets to an almost sold out Jason Mraz concert at the Hollywood Bowl, this just may save my bacon.
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