In New York Taxis It's Not Just Payments, It's Entertainment

In addition, VeriFone announced that 6,500 New York City taxis—half of the total city fleet—are now signed or committed to comprehensive multi-year agreements with VTS for in-taxi acceptance of credit cards, making the company the leading vendor in the taxi technology market. This figure includes the more than 6,050 integrated passenger information and payment solution systems that are already installed in NYC taxis, and represents totals that greatly exceed the company’s original projections.

“Interest in the VeriFone in-taxi system is robust and continues to attract attention from taxi passengers,” says Douglas G. Bergeron, CEO of VeriFone. “The combination of the superior technology, ease of use and passenger benefits offers a full package that is quickly becoming the standard in the market and allows us to continue to expand entertainment and information offerings for passengers.”

In addition to People.com, the leading celebrity news site, VTS is also providing content from PMbuzz.com, a leading source of information on the New York night life scene, and Disney Broadway, which brings Disney classics to the stage. The VTS system features a Passenger Information Monitor with a 10.4-inch touch-screen monitor that features programming from a host of providers, including WABC-TV’s local news, AccuWeather, Reuters Business News and the Zagat Survey, in addition to the new sources.

“By being in the cabs, we are able to reach more people in three days than any New York night life Web site reaches in one month,” said Danny Epstien, president and founder of PMbuzz.com. “It’s a new tool to help people plan their nights while they are actually on the go.”

VTS was the first vendor authorized by the NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) to implement systems for the city’s 13,000 taxis. VTS expects to soon be serving more than 50 percent of the city’s taxi fleet. The VeriFone-based solution was installed as part of a mandate from the TLC requiring all taxis to offer credit/debit card acceptance and an interactive electronic passenger map and information screen. The wireless-based credit card transaction system meets or exceeds payment card industry (PCI) standards and does not store any unencrypted data.

New York taxi patrons have been pleased with the benefits of the system, including the GPS component that allows for quick recovery of items accidentally left in cabs. Medallion owners are also reporting positive results. “VeriFone’s technology is the best thing to happen to the taxi industry in its 100 year history,” says Sunny Zahoori, a 20-year taxi industry veteran and manager of East West Management Corporation, a taxi garage in Manhattan. “Our drivers have seen a 35 percent increase in fares and significantly higher tips as a result of the new system.”

VeriFone is the majority shareholder of VeriFone Transportation Systems, a joint venture between VeriFone Holdings, Inc. and TaxiTronics, the company that services more than 8,000 of the taxi meters in the New York City cab fleet.