At Mobile World Congress 2017 Mastercard announced plans to expand Qkr! with Masterpass to several new markets including Brazil, Canada, Ireland, Singapore, South Africa, and the United States.
Qkr! is a mobile order platform created by Mastercard Labs that allows consumers to order ahead and pay for goods on their smartphone, sparing them from waiting in line.
Upon entering these new markets, Canadian users will be able to use Qkr to pay fees, buy tickets for events, and make payments at gas stations, parking lots and sports arenas with participating retailers.
“Today, we’re looking for convenience in all parts of our lives,” said Betty DeVita, chief commercial officer of Digital Payments and Labs at Mastercard, in a statement sent to MobileSyrup.
“Though grab-and-go retail is becoming increasingly popular with those on the move, consumers maintain high customer service expectations. Qkr! with Masterpass provides them with a frictionless retail experience — bringing together self-service, fast, seamless payments and card safety and security in new and unique ways,” she continued.
The Qkr app uses Masterpass, a payment platform that allows consumers to make mobile purchases without having to enter their financial information at every new purchase site.
In addition to the expansion, Mastercard also announced a new functionality which will improve the consumer’s mobile experience at bars, clubs or restaurants.
This new feature is called ‘Open Tab’ and it allows users to open a tab at a bar or restaurant without depositing a payment card or an identity document. This feature will be available to restaurants in 2017.
Qkr is already operational in Australia, Colombia, Mexico and the United Kingdom.
This article was originally published on MobileSyrup