Photo: BMW
BMW and MasterCard have been working together to bring forward a new credit card that can also be used as a key fob. Don’t be scared, it’s not as fancy as you might think. Actually, it’s a pretty old design.
Basically, the American financial company is just using the old Near Field Communication technology to allow you to unlock rental cars. This has been around for quite some time now and starting this year, customers can pay for rental services just by swiping the card near a special sensor.
This is a car-sharing service offered by BMW and Sixt. They have more than 2,800 cars up for renting and serve over 350,000 people in the USA, UK, Germany and Austria. All you need is a smartphone app or a laptop and an ID card.
You go online and register which is a one-time process. Then you can reserve a MINI or BMW car from the fleet simply by accessing the DriveNow network using the aforementioned app. Of course, when you register, you need to provide a credit card that should be the one from MasterCard.
Then, when you reach the car you reserved, all you have to do is hold it near the sensor (that will be conveniently installed in the windscreen) and you unlock the vehicle. Since the user’s identity was already checked when the credit card was issued, identification with an additional ID card or the smartphone is no longer required.
How does it work?
Let’s say that you arrive in a city and you just got off the plane. Now, you need a car to get to a meeting or maybe visit some friends. Getting a cab might be a little too risky (for some people) and maybe even too expensive. What do you do? Rent a car, of course! If you want a BMW, you go to DriveNow.This is a car-sharing service offered by BMW and Sixt. They have more than 2,800 cars up for renting and serve over 350,000 people in the USA, UK, Germany and Austria. All you need is a smartphone app or a laptop and an ID card.
You go online and register which is a one-time process. Then you can reserve a MINI or BMW car from the fleet simply by accessing the DriveNow network using the aforementioned app. Of course, when you register, you need to provide a credit card that should be the one from MasterCard.
Then, when you reach the car you reserved, all you have to do is hold it near the sensor (that will be conveniently installed in the windscreen) and you unlock the vehicle. Since the user’s identity was already checked when the credit card was issued, identification with an additional ID card or the smartphone is no longer required.
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