EasyCard Corp (悠遊卡) yesterday said that it is close to resolving a dispute that has prevented use of EasyCards on the Kaohsiung MRT (KMRT) system’s light rail line. EasyCards were not among the accepted payment platforms when the system began charging fares at the beginning of this month.
EasyCard had declined to pay a NT$20 million (US$663,350) fee to fund the installation of kiosks for passengers to top up their cards, as it deemed the cost too high.
The fee was calculated based on EasyCard’s dominant 78.8 percent share of the nation’s market for electronic stored-value cards in terms of issuance and transaction volume, the KMRT has said.
However, EasyCard said that the fee should be based on the card’s actual ridership, which is about 20 percent in Kaohsiung.
Following a mediation session with the government on Thursday last week, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications’ Department of Railways and Highways sided with the Taipei-based firm, EasyCard chairman Kenneth Lin (林向愷) said at a news conference in Taipei yesterday.
EasyCard has proposed paying NT$6 million to build the kiosks and NT$3 million in activation fees, Lin said, adding that it would provide further payments if ridership of its cards exceeds 20 percent.
As back-end systems are in place, payment via EasyCards would be available on the light rail line after the KMRT provides its consent, he said.
“We have shown our efforts to build goodwill in the negotiation and are awaiting the KMRT’s response,” Lin said, adding that the dispute would likely be resolved before the end of this year.
In related news, Taipei Fubon Commercial Bank (台北富邦銀行) and its affiliate Taiwan Mobile (台灣大哥大) yesterday launched a co-branded EasyCard that enables SIM-based payments with smartphones.
The card allows users to top up their EasyCards from their smartphones through a credit card payment in Fubon Bank’s wallet app.
The feature aims to remedy the inconvenience of finding kiosks or service counters to add funds to EasyCards.
More than 200,000 SIM-based EasyCards are expected to be issued by the end of the year, EasyCard vice president Lin Chi-liang (林季良) said.
Fubon Bank said it also plans to launch a credit card aimed at SIM-based EasyCard users, which is to offer several promotional rewards, including 10 percent cash rebates on balance replenishments.
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