PayOutOnline??

[Chris]

Webb, I must say that your explanation does give an insight into some of the benefits of their system. This explanation would have been well served in their initial press release/product launch. It's still a little way off from "true" e-commerce, but let's just say that it's a start

melbarr, I'm not too clear on your point re: TeleScotia. Help me out with a little more explanation

[Collin]

I guess what melbarr is suggesting is that with Telescotia you do not need to visit the bank at all...

You make a phone call and transact your business (bill payment) right over the phone using the automated system whether it be to NWC/JPS/ CWJ etc.... a real timesaver for those persons who find themselves so darn busy in a day to find time to go to an office to pay those bills....

... and yeah in can be done 24/7 .... at your own convienence..... thus if they (payout online) could understand that they would know how to structure their service for convience!!

Am I correct in that understaning Melbarr???

[Chris]

Now that you added more words to it makes it clearer to me :-[ Must have too much water soaking my head ;D

Yes, TeleScotia is a wonderful system. There is also TeleMidas, but I'm only familiar with TeleScotia.

btw - TeleScotia isn't 24/7 when it comes to prompt and timely payment of your BNS credit card statement so as to avoid late payment fees. Check your branch for details .

I'm not saying that the service isn't available for use 24/7, it is. What I'm saying/advising is that you have to check when the payment will actually go thru to your bill being paid.

[Collin]

Telemidas and Telescotia works the same way...
I take your word for it re BNS as I do not have such facility, I know the goal of each but only used telescotia once to pay a phone bill.

[CKnight]

for me it's a monthly ritual. Credit Card, light bill, courts. I would use it for phone bill payments but C&W offers their own payment system.

[Collin]

Yeah CWJ just started offering their own system, also via their website!

[peterw]

Hi - new to Tech Jamaica, but have been following with interest the discussion on PayOutOnline. Good comments, and the biggest criticism of the service is the one that was immediately picked up here - namely that you still have to go to a real JN bricks and mortar branch in order to complete payment - so it isn't really "Online". So, why do we do it?

When we started PayOutOnline, we were trying to address three main issues:

1. International payments are really expensive (Less and less e-commerce sites will accept international credit cards, WU charges 4%, banks charge up to US$35 per transaction, etc).
2. International payments are really difficult to make, first you have to find the foreign exchange, then send it - and sending it can be more difficult than finding it.
3. International payments are inconsistent in the time that they take to reach the recipient - usually because of errors or delays made during the transcription of the transactions.

So we designed PayOutOnline to be more efficient in making international payments (and only international payments) - we capture the instructions from the customer online, and interface directly into the banking systems, so that once the customer enters the transaction information through the web, it can be uploaded directly into the banking system appropriate for the delivery method (cheque, e-cheque or wire) without any other human interaction. Also, through the partnership with JN, the customer can pay for the transaction in US$ or J$ - compressing what was previously a two transaction process into one.

This brings down the cost, reduces the delays and errors, and makes it easier for customers - and works well I'm happy to say!

In developing the service we also recognized that we have to work within the constraints of the existing banking systems, and banking laws. These basically come down to the facts that beacuse we don't yet have a digital signatures law, or an electronic clearing house between banks, and because money laundering is a real problem, we need to have customers fund their payments through a paper cheque, with a signature, at a JN branch.

We're making it as easy as we can for customers by adding agents to the service (Lets Investments, DB&G, Manufacturers Sigma Merchant Bank and JN- Fund Managers have signed up so far) through which customers can pay also.

If we could make it purely online, would we? I think we would, but we'd have to think about it. Fraud in the US and Europe from online use of credit cards has proved to be really resilient - despite the efforts of card issuers, merchants and security companies. Direct transfers from bank accounts - having experienced very little fraud to date - are just beginning to have systematic fraud schemes focused on them. Banks don't like to talk about it, because a bank that experiences and admits fraud is as popular as an airline that says they have a "pretty good safety record". So there are advantages and disadvantages always.

Let me know what you think. PayOutOnline is not perfect by any means, and any and all suggestions, ideas and criticisms are always welcome!

[Collin]

Peterw,

Firstly, it is great to actually hear from someone within the system, and secondly to hear what the logic behind business plan is.

I do beleive that when taken into account your expanation does clarify some issues and had this been communicated to the wider public upon launch of service then the criticisms would have been less.

It remains to be seen, I figure just how successful the business logic will be, in the interim .. best of luck.

[CKnight]

I must say emphatically that I'm still far from impressed.

Why is it so hard to set up a service that allows me to pay bills with my Credit Card?

Though you may have come across sites that no longer accept international credit cards, I am yet to, and I shop online religiously.

Take a look at Paypal (http://www.paypal.com). Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't this service similar to what you are offering? The only difference I see is that Paypal encompasses more services and is far more feature rich compared to yours.

The only complaint coming in about Paypal is that they are very paranoid about "suspicious" transactions when it comes to withdrawals and deposits to bank accounts which I personally feel is in the users best interest and cuts down on attempts to launder.

All I'm saying is it seems to me that you have taken a seemingly simple process (at least on paper) and made it into an unnecessarily complex venture.

Mind you, your service is far better than the limited and time consuming options available before, however it could be much more.

[peterw]

In regard to previous models of online payment services, I looked at PayPal as a really great - and obviously successful - model. They have a very different target market - their origins are as an auction settlement service for credit card payments between individuals and they grew into a way for small online merchants to also collect payment. Their average transaction is small, and most customers like the "instant credit" even if it takes 5-10 days to get the funds to your bank account.

Our market is much more people making payments internationally that are difficult to make on a credit card (school fees, allowances, medical expenses, payment for imported goods and services, etc) - larger transactions, with more time sensitivity.

Does this make sense?