Steve Edelson of Jton Systems on MobiWallet

Every so often a company comes along promising to help eliminate transactions requiring paper currency. Outside the U.S. this is realized in a number of markets where payments tied to cell phone bills are the norm and in a few cases, RFID solutions provide a method of payment for things like highway toll booths and bus and subway fares. In the U.S., we baby step toward paperless payment with the never-empty Starbucks card that automatically refills from a credit card when the balance gets low. Jton Systems (pronounced j-tone) is aiming to tie these worlds together with their MobiWallet system, creating an integrated SIM card and RFID solution for a transaction infrastructure that works simply by passing your cell phone over the toll collection interface. Here Jake talks with Steve Edelson of Jton about MobiWallet, how it works and what the potential is for using it in handling public transportation fares as well as other transactions like paying for tickets to Olympic events in Beijing in 2008.

You can read more about MobiWallet in Jake’s DEMO China coverage.