BOKU Announces Mobile Payments Partnership with U.S. Cellular

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BOKU, Inc., the global leader in online mobile payments, today announced a partnership with U.S. Cellular (NYSE: USM) to maximize the adoption of direct-to-bill mobile operator billing as a payment option. BOKU is one of the first payments providers to integrate and launch with U.S. Cellular to provide mobile payments for the carrier’s postpaid customers across 26 states.

“With U.S. Cellular we are connecting to a powerful direct billing API that supports advanced features that benefit our merchant partners. U.S. Cellular is a top tier partner for BOKU and together we’re able to deliver a top of the line experience by merging our technologies and proficiency.”

Online merchants will generate incremental revenue from consumers who find mobile the easiest way to pay online, and attract new consumers who previously were unable or chose not to pay via other payment options, such as credit and debit accounts. When making purchases from their favorite online merchants, consumers will benefit from a convenient and secure payment experience that is accessible to all U.S. Cellular subscribers. Consumers simply enter their phone number to checkout, and respond via text message to confirm the payment with the charges appearing on their wireless bill.

The U.S. Cellular advanced direct billing API supports the following:

An efficient user authentication process that delivers better conversion for merchants
Accurate and timely notification of billing errors impacting purchase (e.g. insufficient funds), giving consumers great transparency
Continuous pricing, enabling merchants to create a wide range of price points
An interface that seamlessly and cost effectively processes refunds within the U.S. Cellular billing system

Kevin Grant, Senior Vice President of Sales at BOKU commented that: “With U.S. Cellular we are connecting to a powerful direct billing API that supports advanced features that benefit our merchant partners. U.S. Cellular is a top tier partner for BOKU and together we’re able to deliver a top of the line experience by merging our technologies and proficiency.”

U.S. Cellular postpaid subscribers can immediately begin paying online with their mobile account at participating online merchants.

About U.S. Cellular:

U.S. Cellular rewards its customers with unmatched benefits and industry-leading innovations designed to elevate the customer experience. The Chicago-based carrier has a strong line-up of cutting-edge devices that are all backed by its high-speed nationwide network that has the highest call quality of any national carrier. Currently, 58 percent of customers have access to 4G LTE speeds and 87 percent will have access by the end of 2013. U.S. Cellular was named a J.D. Power and Associates Customer Service Champion in 2012 for the second year in a row. To learn more about U.S. Cellular, visit one of its retail stores or uscellular.com. To get the latest news, promos and videos, connect with U.S. Cellular on Facebook.com/uscellular, Twitter.com/uscellular and YouTube.com/uscellularcorp.

About BOKU:

BOKU, the leading online mobile payments company, brings bank-grade payments technology and mobile users together, creating a trusted, accessible platform for consumers, merchants and carriers alike. Based in San Francisco with offices in Europe and Asia, BOKU reaches nearly 4 billion consumers worldwide, across 68 different countries. Leading Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and venture capitalists fund BOKU including Andreessen Horowitz, Benchmark Capital, DAG Ventures, Index Ventures, Khosla Ventures, and NEA.

For more information visit: www.boku.com