Masabi, an mTicketing technology provider for the transport sector, has unveiled a proof-of-concept Android app, dubbed ‘Smart Card Buddy Beta,’ that can read and display data from ITSO-based transport ticketing smart cards (view press release). The app is the first to come out of the Masabi Beta Labs programme and paves the way for smart card ticket validation with smartphone hardware. The company aims to eventually enable passengers to buy rail tickets or top-up credit for their smart card on their handset, rather than at a station terminal. Masabi claims the solution can also be amended for use with NFC contactless technology as well as ITSO (the UK national standard for smart ticketing).

“Masabi’s Smart card Buddy Beta has the potential to bridge two rapidly growing but separate technologies – mobile phones and smart cards. This proof of concept app shows that the new generation of NFC enabled smartphones can operate as ticket readers thereby letting passengers and inspectors check what’s on a smart card without the need for specialist hardware. In the future, users could even buy tickets or credit for their smart card using their phone,” said Tom Godber, Masabi CTO.

Masabi’s mobile ticketing technology allows users to search for train times and buy tickets which can then be picked up at stations, displayed as an on-screen barcode or via in-built NFC. The company recently won its first contract outside the UK with the Massachusetts Bay Transport Authority (MBTA) which is set to launch in Q4.