ToneTag extends sound waves-based payments technology to FreeCharge

BENGALURU: India’s popular digital payments startup, FreeCharge will now extend a new feature to its customers. They can now make payments using sound waves as a medium, a technology developed by ToneTag.

Currently, in addition to sound payment, customers can make the payment using On-The-Go-Pin, scanning the QR code or getting their in-app QR code scanned by the merchant.

Sound payments on FreeCharge are enabled through its partnership with ToneTag, which is a key enabler of sound based payments in the mobile payment landscape in India. In order to make payments using this new feature, the customer needs to click ‘Pay or Send’ in his FreeCharge App and select sound payment. The merchant then needs to enter the transaction details on the platform he is using which will emit a sound signal to the customers App as a replacement of an OTP or QR code scanning for the payment process. The authentication process takes microseconds in the background and the customer gets a Pay Now button, clicking on which completes the payment process.

Using the ToneTag software development kit, merchants can accept sound based payments through any device – Laptop’s, PC’s, Tablets, EDC’s, mPOS, Smartphones, Feature phones and so on. This means merchants can accept sound based payments using FreeCharge on the existing infrastructure they have at no additional cost to them.

Speaking on the feature, Govind Rajan, CEO, FreeCharge said, “FreeCharge takes immense pride in providing its consumers with the best transaction experience. Launching sound payments on our platform in partnership with ToneTag, will ensure that we remain the best. The ease of the payment mechanism coupled with no infrastructure cost to set up the payments are the USP of the product and we hope to delight our customers with more such innovations in the future as well.”

Kumar Abhishek, CEO, ToneTag said, “We are pleased to announce that ToneTag technology will be featured in the FreeCharge wallet app. Through the partnership ToneTag will enable FreeCharge users to pay seamlessly at physical stores, providing an extension of the user experience that FreeCharge is known for in the online payments domain.”

In the initial stages of the partnership, FreeCharge customers can make payments using this new feature at nearly 62 outlets of Trust Pharmacy, mall parkings, NICE toll plaza and several other colleges and office parkings associated as ToneTag merchants. At present, ToneTag is housed in nearly 38 million customer devices through various tie-ups with payment partners and 42,000 merchants accept payments using this technique.