In a move that will be seen as a very positive
endorsement of its “Web currency,” beenz.com
announced this week that Mondex
International will debut a beenz-carrying smart card.
The two companies say that their products are “complementary but distinct”
and believe the agreement will extend the market reach of both beenz and Mondex
e-cash. A new smart card will carry the two currencies together with a selection of
e-commerce services.
“We can now deliver cash and beenz in potentially all electronic
environments, breaking down the manifestly false distinction between on-line and off-line
commerce,” said Charles Cohen, founder and chief technology officer of
beenz.com.
“These can scale from reverse-payments in beenz where merchants pay
consumers
to visit their sites, to cash purchases using Mondex, all of which can be
delivered at zero cost.”
Mondex, which has recently been enhanced to run on the high security
MULTOS smart card platform, is
under development in more than 75 countries. It is designed to work
in the real world for payment of over-the-counter services as well
as for paying for goods on the Internet.
Unlike Mondex e-cash, beenz cannot be bought directly by consumers. Web
users earn their beenz by visiting and shopping at Web sites which
offer the currency as a reward. UK Web sites that carry beenz include
VNU, MORI, Excite and ebookers.
“In partnering with Mondex International, we are able to leverage the
company’s expertise and trusted technology to deliver beenz in a secure,
portable format that enhances our position as a vital tool for
e-commerce,” said Philip Letts, chairman and chief executive officer of
beenz.com.
The statistics for beenz are beginning to stack up: with over 14 million
transactions by 440,000 consumers, and 450 million beenz in circulation.
