Telefónica Deutschland has today launched the mobile payment system mpass in Germany, starting with star filling stations in Hamburg. Star customers can now pay contactlessly by mobile phone — all they need is an mpass account and an NFC chip-embedded sticker on their mobile phone.

Customers register for the service at the mpass website and automatically are sent the NFC sticker for their device. They also receive a credit of 5 euros ($6.45) on their mpass account for signing up.

Tap-and-go payment is available at all merchants displaying the MasterCardPayPass logo. For amounts under 25 euros ($32.24), payment is immediate. Higher amounts must be authorized by PIN entry. The cost is billed via mpass, the contactless joint mobile payment service from carriers o2, Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom.

Customers settle their mpass accounts either by direct debit or by bank transfer to their mpass account. A free, downloadable app for Android and iPhone operating systems provides an overview of transactions both past and pending. The app also locates other merchants nearby that accept mpass.

"From now on our customers can pay for their purchases using their mobiles," says Michiel van Eldik, managing director of wholesale and partner management at Telefónica Deutschland. "The expansion of our product portfolio with contactless payments in shops takes us a big step forward, which means our ecosystem of financial products is almost complete."

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