Everybody do the wave – at the movies

MANILA, Philippines - It’s a fact of modern life: we’ve got limited time on our hands. Even going to the movies to relax can feel like a hassle, when you’re looking at your watch and afraid of missing the previews.

Fortunately, Citi Philippines has a way to buy us more time. It’s called payWave, a “tap and pay” method of purchasing tickets and food at selected cinemas with your Citibank Visa credit card. Right now, it’s being offered at Eastwood and Lucky Chinatown Cinemas.

How does it work? Let’s say you want to watch Gravity at 9:30 p.m., but you also want to increase your density by getting a bucket of popcorn and a large soda; the movie starts in eight minutes. Do you have enough time to complete your mission?

With payWave technology, the answer is yes. You line up for your ticket, select your seats, and tap your Citibank Visa card against the payWave reader located at the ticket kiosk. Within 6 seconds, the machine issues your printed receipt; there’s no need to sign anything, and the ticket seller hands over your tickets. Fast and easy. And more than enough time left to line up for popcorn.

Citibank partnered with Visa and Megaworld Lifestyle Malls to present this effortless way of paying.  Doing the payWave when purchasing tickets also has added security benefits.

Citi Philippines CEO Batara Sianturi relates that payWave marks Citi’s latest innovation to promote “contactless” payment, where your card never leaves your hand.

“Citi is committed to be the leading digital bank in the Philippines, in Asia and in the rest of the globe,” says Sianturi. “We are delighted to introduce our clients to a new way to pay with their credit cards — where they simply wave, pay and go.”

“Watching movies is all about the experience, which starts from the time they line up to purchase a ticket, to the moment they exit the cinema,” says Megaworld Corporation first vice president Kevin Tan. “By cutting down the waiting time of customers when they buy a ticket, we are improving the customer experience and we are thankful to Citibank and Visa for introducing this wonderful technology to us.

“Megaworld Lifestyle Malls is all about living the good life and payWave is one of our projects that allowed us to do this by giving our customers a hassle-free movie experience,” he adds.

Adds consumer business manager for Citi Philippines Bea Tan: “We understand our customers and know the demands on their time and how their lifestyles are changing. Our latest innovation will empower our clients to access the latest technology in credit card payments — all while enjoying best-in-class rewards that they can only have with Citibank credit cards.”

The Citibank Visa payWave cards use the newest chip technology called Dynamic Data Authentication (DDA). DDA means that every time the customer transacts with his card, the chip generates a unique authentication code. Unlike with the previous chip version, the codes generated are the same for all transactions. With DDA (which is required for contactless cards), the card is harder to clone.

On average, payWave transactions can be up to three times faster than cash payments. Tan thinks this will cut down on long queuing lines at ticket booths. “Usually, the lead time takes around a minute or two for cash payments, and around 30-50 seconds for credit card transactions that require the signature of the cardholder. With Citibank Visa payWave, customers will only experience around 6 seconds lead time for credit card transaction processing, and no signatures required!”

The payWave system is already in place at Eastwood and Lucky Chinatown Cinemas, and will be added at Newport Mall Cinemas by end of the year. During the launch, Tan says, a lot of guests were excited to try out the new method. “We’re looking forward to seeing more customers over the coming weeks using their payWave cards to enjoy their movies.”

The mechanics of the Citibank payWave system are simple. Cardholders need to use a payWave-enabled card for transactions. All new applicants for select Citi Visa credit cards will get a payWave-enabled card when they are approved. Existing cardholders will get theirs when their card is renewed, or they can apply for it now by calling CitiPhone at 995-9999.  Replacement is free until December 2013.

Citi cardholders simply tap their cards in front of a payWave reader to pay for their goods. If the transaction is P2,000 or less, there’s no need to sign for your purchases; just collect the receipt. In order to know if you can use payWave, look for the contactless symbol at the merchant’s store façade and/or checkout counters.

And in the future, even getting your popcorn and drinks might go a bit faster.

 â€œIdeally, we want all of our tenants to offer payWave to all customers at all of our malls because it makes the payment process faster for our customers,” says Tan. “Megaworld Lifestyle Malls is all about improving customer experience and we definitely see payWave as one of the answers in order to bring the good life to all of our patrons.”

Going to the movies just got more fun.