Regional News.

Asia/Pacific

China Uses Chip Cards To Pay Utility Bills: China is increasingly turning to smart cards for payment of such utilities as gas, electricity and water. The Ministry of Construction says some 300 cities are using chip cards for this purpose, with nearly 6 million cards issued to individuals for making payment and some 4.5 million card-reading devices installed. Consumers load value onto the card at a bank and then transfer the value to the utility meter via a card reader. That allows payment without the utility company sending representatives to read meters and collect cash payments. The ministry also reported that nearly 30 million chip cards have been issued for paying transit fares in about 90 cities around China.

A Second Chinese City Orders Watchdata Dual-Interface Cards: The city of Suzhou has ordered 200,000 dual-interface, contact/contactless cards from China-based smart card vendor Watchdata, the company reports. The cards will be used initially for paying taxi fares and on 1,000 city buses equipped to read contactless cards. In the future, the card is expected to be used for paying for …