First Data Granted Patent for Activation of Prepaid Cards

ATLANTA -- First Data Corp. has been granted a patent for technology to activate multiple prepaid cards at the point-of-sale, the company reported.

U.S. Patent No. 7,822,640 covers technology that allows merchants to activate all of the cards within a multipack at once rather than having to individually scan or key in each number, saving time at the point-of-sale. When multipacks of cards are created, First Data uses the technology to generate an additional account number for the entire package. Activation of the “extra” account activates all of the cards in the package, which could be open- or closed-loop cards.

"First Data continually works to innovate, helping our customers meet today’s needs and shaping the future of payments," Jeff Johnson, First Data senior vice president and division manager of prepaid solutions said in a released statement."We believe this technology will give our customers an advantage and will pave the way for more business-to-business prepaid card purchases, such as employee incentive cards, to happen at the point of sale."

The multi-card activation capability is part of First Data’s suite of prepaid offerings that includes payroll and disbursement solutions, gift card programs and incentive, rebate and reward cards.

The new patent is one of more than 300 patents issued to First Data.

 

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