Microsoft, FreedomPay Combine Payments, Data Management Tech

Microsoft and mobile commerce provider FreedomPay have developed a system that integrates digital payments with a company's underlying business processes.

The two companies have previously collaborated on marketing and payments technology, and on Nov. 18 announced a joint Payments Platform as a Service offering that combines the FreedomPay Commerce Platform with Microsoft data management tools, such as Windows Azure.

The FreedomPay Commerce Platform, which underpins the Vibe mobile wallet, includes mobile payments and incentive technologies that work with point of sale systems, a gateway that transmits transaction data, and security tools. Working with Microsoft, FreedomPay enables real-time payment transactions combined with data analytics, and a digital wallet targeted at retailers, financial institutions and other organizations.

The Web-delivered technology is designed to unify consumer and inventory data across the back end technology that supports customer relationship management and point of sale execution. This integrated system can link a consumer's identity across multiple outlets such as Facebook, Skype, Xbox, mobile devices and credit cards—sending marketing and incentives to consumers based on their interests and shopping habits.

"In the past, the payments business was purely transactional. To fend off competition and to unlock the inherent value in payments, banks and merchants must treat the payments business as an information business," says Colin Kerr, industry solutions director for worldwide financial services at Microsoft, in a press release. "The heart of this is the use of advanced payments data analytics, brought to life by a connected social and mobile device experience."