Smart Bits: 40 German Phone Booths Take Smart Cards

The telephone equipment maker Mannesmann Arcor said it is participating in an expansion of an electronic cash program in Ludwigsburg, Germany.

Through an agreement with Kreissparkasse Ludwigsburg, the local savings bank operating under a program of the national savings bank and giro association, 40 Arcor telephone booths have been equipped to accept smart card payments. The phones can also be used to reload value on cards.

In addition to the Arcor phones and 1,000 other acceptance points around Ludwigsburg, 350 train ticketing machines have become chip-compatible through the participation of Deutsche Bahn.

More than 40 million bank-issued chip cards are in circulation in Germany and about half are from members of the savings bank group, Deutsche Sparkassen und Giroverband.

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