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Cellular forums Home > Archive > Cell Phones in Great Britain > September 2005 > Electronic Mobile Top Up
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Electronic Mobile Top Up
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| ashehu@gmail.com 2005-09-22, 5:48 pm |
| Hi,
Can anyonel pls explain how E-Top up works? I get the general idea but
want to know the techniical details behind it. Like how the retailer
communicates with the mobile network and so on.
Cheers,
Ammar
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| Graham J 2005-09-22, 5:48 pm |
| > Like how the retailer communicates with the mobile network and so on.
I am quite possibly talking complete rubbish here, but I've always assumed
that the retailer's card terminal dials up (or has a more permanent
connection to) the central systems of whoever they are contracted with for
card handling, e.g. Streamline or Barclays, and it is those systems that
handle the connections to VISA or Mastercard or whoever, and in the case of
mobile top-ups to the mobile networks. So the retailers terminal is little
more than a remote input device and a printer in the scheme of things. I
can't provide any technical details whatsoever but I don't expect there to
be anything particularly exotic involved.
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| obucket@despammed.com declared for all the world to hear...
>
> I am quite possibly talking complete rubbish here, but I've always assumed
> that the retailer's card terminal dials up (or has a more permanent
> connection to) the central systems of whoever they are contracted with for
> card handling, e.g. Streamline or Barclays, and it is those systems that
> handle the connections to VISA or Mastercard or whoever, and in the case of
> mobile top-ups to the mobile networks. So the retailers terminal is little
> more than a remote input device and a printer in the scheme of things. I
> can't provide any technical details whatsoever but I don't expect there to
> be anything particularly exotic involved.
Not quite, the epay terminals communicate with servers at "ePay" either
via dial-up or by any other method (internet connection). Epay then
communicates with the mobile network to credit the account and at the
same time signals the terminal in the shop that the transaction is
complete. The transaction is assigned a reference and the terminal
prints a receipt.
The retailer then takes payment through their till or EPOS system like
any other product.
Some stores have integrated systems, where the hardware terminal is
replaced with a software application on the EPoS computer but the
communication sequence is the same.
--
Regards
Jon
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| dougnheffernan@gmail.com 2005-09-23, 5:48 pm |
| you must be a sad, pathetic person for wanting to know that.
just pay your money and get on with life
ps
I bet you are a trainspotter and stamp collector - LOL
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| Bob Geddes 2005-09-25, 5:49 pm |
| In article <1127399663.094103.110590@g47g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>,
ashehu@gmail.com writes
>Hi,
>Can anyonel pls explain how E-Top up works? I get the general idea but
>want to know the techniical details behind it. Like how the retailer
>communicates with the mobile network and so on.
>Cheers,
>Ammar
>
The card has an electronic serial number and a printed one.
When you first use it you enter the printed one on your phone.
the phone company uses the printed one you enter to tie the electronic
credits to your phone. From then on electronic credits go straight to
your phone account.
With o2 you often get the credit notification on the phone just after
you walk out the shop.
--
Bob Geddes
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