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Federal Reserve Electronic Payment Findings Support USA Technologies' Investment In Developing Next Generation, Wireless Cashless Payment TechnologyMALVERN, Pa., Dec. 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- USA Technologies, Inc. (BULLETIN BOARD: USTT) , announced today that it has invested in an extensive product line of cashless technology that can capitalize on the Federal Reserve finding that electronic transactions had outpaced check payments for the first time. In response to today's announcement that electronic payment transactions last year totaled 44.5 billion, exceeding 36.7 billion check transactions, Mr. Jensen said USA Technologies' own studies indicated there were 1.7 billion credit cards in circulation worldwide, with one-billion in the United States alone. "We are delighted with the findings, and we're exceptionally well positioned to take advantage of the rapidly emerging trend to cashless payments with credit/debit cards, or any other wireless device," said Mr. Jensen. "Our customers are among some of the biggest businesses in the world, and they share our vision of a cashless society, linked to the Internet by wireless, using just about any kind of cashless payment system." USA Technologies specializes in cashless transactions for the all-day, every-day unattended shopping market, targeting everything from vending machines, retail kiosks, and business centers, to college laundries, all connected to the Internet. Anticipating the trend to cashless, USA Technologies worked with global partners such as IBM to develop a scalable platform of products and network services that can be easily mass produced for the next generation of wireless, network connected consumer. IBM also hosts the company's USALive wireless payments network The company has been granted 55 patents, and according to a Nilson Report, USA Technologies had captured 90 percent of all wireless cashless transactions in vending. "We predicted that the consumer in the networked, global marketplace would want the convenience, ease of use, and instant gratification that comes with cashless transactions, and there is nothing more convenient, accessible or instant than vending machines and retail kiosks," said Mr. Jensen. "The Fed's findings strengthen recent predictions from the Kiplinger Report that the emergence of wireless, cashless technology will double vending industry sales to $70 billion by 2010, and the Nilson Report's prediction that one-half of the eight million vending machines in the US will be credit card enabled by 2009." A white paper on cashless vending tends, recently released by NAMA, the vending industry's national body, predicted that credit card transactions at vending machines will reach two million transactions, valued at $570 million, within three years. The full text of the white paper is available on the company's web site: http://www.usatech.com/ Industry analysts predict the biggest untapped opportunity exists in cashless micro-payments through vending machines and kiosks, beginning at $1.00. Analysts estimate that micro-payments could grow to a $200 billion business by end of year 2005. The amount is forecast to increase dramatically by 2010 when an estimated 1.5 billion "everyday devices" such as PDAs are expected to be connected to the Worldwide Web. "We're seeing the emergence of the cashless, networked economy where a vast number of different types of machines will be connected to the Web, allowing consumers to make payments when they please, with just about whatever payment device they please -- credit/debit card, keycard, ID card, payroll deduct, cellular phone, PDA, RFID, or something as simple as keying a pin number on a pop up screen," said Mr. Jensen. Mr. Jensen said his company has responded to what the American consumer wants -- a more convenient, simple, all-day/every-day, cashless shopping experience. As a result, his company, based in Malvern, near Philadelphia, PA, is already considered a leader in the unattended cashless marketplace. Among USA Technologies key customers and business partners sharing the cashless experience are IBM, Sony, Marriott, Mars M&M, Honeywell, Unilever and FedEx/Kinko's. USA Technologies, with IBM support, is also the company behind the e-Suds program which is linking college laundries to the Internet, allowing students to both do their laundry and pay for it online. Students go online to book the washing machine, pay for it by swiping their ID card, and are alerted by an e-mail message on their Laptop or cellular phone when the washing is done. More than 90 percent of students we polled say they love the convenience. Economists interpreted the Federal Reserve's findings of more electronic payments than checks as reflecting the expanding role of technology in the retail, financial and banking business, as well as the industry's efforts to make electronic payments more convenient for customers. The Federal Reserve's findings were published and announced today on all major news networks and I major media publications, and have attracted enormous industry interest. About USA Technologies: USA Technologies is a leader in the networking of distributed assets, wireless non-cash transactions, associated financial/network services and energy management. USA Technologies provides networked credit card and other non-cash systems in the vending, commercial laundry, hospitality and digital imaging industries. USA Technologies is an IBM Business Partner. The Company has marketing agreements with AT&T, Honeywell, MEI, Unilever and the ZiLOG Corporation. http://www.usatech.com/ Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act: With the exception of the historical information contained in this release, the matters described herein contain forward-looking statements that involve risk and uncertainties that may individually or mutually impact the matters herein described, including but not limited to the ability of the Company to increase revenues in the future due to the developing and unpredictable markets for its products, the ability to achieve a positive cash flow, the ability to obtain orders for or install its products including the G-5 e-Port, the ability to obtain new customers and the ability to commercialize its products, which could cause actual results or revenues to differ materially from those contemplated by these statements. USA Technologies Contact: Investor Relations Contact: George R. Jensen, Jr., Chairman & CEO Ken Sgro Stephen P. Herbert, President & COO CEOcast, Inc. Phone: (800) 633-0340 Phone: (212) 732-4300 e-mail: [email protected] USA Technologies, Inc. CONTACT: George R. Jensen, Jr., Chairman & CEO, Stephen P. Herbert,President & COO, [email protected], 1-800-633-0340, both of USATechnologies; Investor Relations, Ken Sgro, CEOcast, Inc., +1-212-732-4300 Web site: http://www.usatech.com/ |