Point of Sale (PoS) terminals operators may have resolved to switch over to Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) to address the perennial connectivity challenges associated with the use of Global System for Mobile (GSM) communication’s general packet radio service (GPRS).
PoS terminal is an electronic device that is used for verifying and processing credit card transactions and works by typically transmitting data over a standard telephone line or an Internet connection (either wired or wireless).
Currently, most PoS terminals in Nigeria are provided with connectivity through GSM subscriber identity module (Sim).
The terminals use the GPRS service of the network (the GSM service provide) to communicate with the network infrastructure of the terminal deployer in this case CBN licensed Payments Terminal Service Providers (PTSP) and National Central Switch as Payments Terminal Service Aggregator (PTSA).
Nigeria CommunicationsWeek however gathered that the growing difficulties to cache transactional data and transmit same accordingly are causing great discomfort to users; merchants; and payments terminal service aggregator.
And if immediate authorization is not available at the time the card was processed, the payment cannot go through and therefore the transaction would not be carried out.
Merchants said that the problem is common with most PoS terminals with connectivity provided through GSM subscriber identity module.
Telecommunications network connectivity difficulties account for 58.5% of challenges merchants faced in Point of Sale (PoS) transactions according to a field market research sponsored by Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System.
Samuel Oluyemi, head, Business Strategy, NIBBS, who disclosed this, said that the field market research main goal is to provide to NIBSS, as Payments Terminal Service Aggregator for the industry (PTSA), a clear guidance on the improvement areas for NIBSS services, as well as to support other stakeholder in the Nigerian Payment System, how to achieve increased volumes of transactions on PoS Terminals in Nigeria.
Other challenges include transactions charges 47.2%, customer insistence to pay in cash 31.3%, transactions often rejected account for 29.1%, card reading difficulties 27.4% and customers’ do not have cards 26.5%.
In a recommendation to NIBSS operators of NCS, the merchants argued that if the current effort by Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System to increase the penetration and use of the device is to succeed, there is need to provide a reliable connectivity at PoS by switching from the present GPRS to CDMA.
They believed that CDMA technology is best suited to deliver data service and that it offers secure communication channel.
According to them, CDMA can also reach even the remotest of areas, so provides wider network service and that the power consumption is reasonably lesser.
Elsewhere, some telecom industry operators have welcomed the move stressing that the switch may well be life-line for the struggling CDMA operators.