Currency available via phone

Travel agent Thomas Cook is launching a service allowing customers to order and pay for foreign currency with their Wap-enabled phones.

Because of the lack of security in the current Wap standard, Thomas Cook is partnering with Sonera SmartTrust to provide additional security. Sonera has developed a subscriber identification module (Sim) card which includes a digital signature. This is used with a PIN code to provide authentication of transactions.

However, customers who want to use the service have to order a new Sim card, because the technology is not included in the cards currently in use.

The service, Mobile FX Bureau, is being trialled in Finland because of that country's high percentage of mobile users. Thomas Cook said the service will roll out in the UK later this year. Other services are also planned, including flight offers and information on delays or gate changes.

Don Haddaway, head of global telecommunications at Thomas Cook, said: "The reasons we want to develop this is as a basic platform for transactional services. The internet is only just becoming transactional - we want to make the mobile internet transactional from the start. We have lots of other things we can put behind this: we have 110,000 outlets worldwide."

Separately, Halifax is to give away Wap phones free to the first 150,000 customers of its new online bank, If.

See also:

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Thomas Cook puts complete holiday booking online

Thomas Cook is set to challenge the growing band of online travel sites by enabling its customers to book, confirm and pay for their holiday travel and accommodation online.  29 Feb 2000

Travel trade afraid of online startups

Holiday operators see purely online travel agencies such as Microsoft's Expedia agency as their most dangerous ecommerce competitors.  21 Oct 1999

Thomas Cook shrugs off BA's online threat

by Claire Woffenden, VNU Newswire  15 Sep 1999

Y2K: Travel industry astounded by 'no travel' advice

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