Fukushima Transportation and Aizu Bus Adopts TMN's Cloud-Based e-cash and QR/Bar Code Payment Services

Transaction Media Networks Inc. (TMN) will begin providing its cloud-based e-cash and QR/Bar code payment service to Lecip Corporation (Lecip), an industrial manufacturing firm with the largest share in bus fare boxes^*1. Fukushima Transportation Inc. and Aizu Bus Co. Ltd, both under Michinori Holdings Inc. (Michinori Holdings), will begin accepting the new electronic payment service within Japan’s FY2023.

Cloud-based payment service is rare to be adopted for a public bus, and this is TMN’s first occasion to provide a significant part of public bus fare collection system.

Background and Purpose behind the Release

In 2011, TMN became the first company in Japan to commercialize a cloud-based (thin-client)^*2 e-cash, promoting further electronic payment uses in Japan. Compared to conventional rich-client^*3 electronic payment service, cloud-based payment service has advantages such as the possibility of future payment brands addition and lower terminal costs. Cloud-based electronic payment services are currently the mainstream choice among retail stores.

Meanwhile most of the public transportation systems use the rich-client electronic payment service. To use different arrays of payment methods, it is necessary to install multiple IC card readers, which poses installation cost and installation location issues.

TMN Gateway, TMN's cloud-based payment service, can be applicable to various e-cash brands, QR/Bar Code payments with just a single IC card reader mounted on the bus. In addition, TMN’s service can flexibly add future payment brands and expand services in response to the trend of cashless payments and the region’s needs.

This is the first initiative in Japan to collect fares for public buses using nanaco, and it is also the first in Japan for WAON to be used for public bus fare collection via a cloud-based service.

TMN believes that it can cooperate as a bridge between electronic payment services and the public transportation sector, by contributing to the promotion of cashless payments that could lead to regional revitalization and the local communities' living standard improvement.

• Source: Lecip “Integrated Report 2022”
• A payment method in which the terminal is equipped with only the minimum necessary functions such as reading, and all remaining processing is performed on the server side.
• A payment method in which all functions such as approval authentication are processed on the terminal side.

Adoption Overview

What’s Next?

TMN has been expanding its market share through cloud-based payment services for physical stores, but it has also been focusing on initiatives with local governments and local public transportation for the past several years. In the future, TMN will expand its business to the mobility field and promote initiatives that contribute to regional revitalization by improving convenience and promoting local public transportation.

• * WAON is a registered trademark of AEON Co., Ltd.
• * nanaco is a registered trademark of Seven Card Service Co., Ltd.
• * Rakuten Pay is a registered trademark of Rakuten Payment, Inc.
• * PayPay is a registered trademark of PayPay Corporation
• * d Barai is a registered trademark of NTT Docomo, Inc.
• * Merpay is a registered trademark of Merpay, Inc.
• * au PAY is a registered trademark of KDDI Corporation
• * J-Coin Pay is a registered trademark of Mizuho Bank, Ltd.
• * Alipay is a registered trademark of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
• * WeChat Pay is a registered trademark of Tencent Holdings Ltd.