IBM and Visa want your IoT devices to double as point of sale terminals

IBM and Visa want every Internet-connected device you own to be its own point of sale. The two companies announced the industry’s first collaboration to achieve this, through IBM’s Watson for IoT platform and Visa’s token technology.

Visa is currently powering 60 percent of the entire world’s payments and IBM’s Watson really needs no particular introduction.

For example, you could be using your car to pay for gas. No cash, no cards, no phones. Or, your running sneakers could be able to purchase you new ones, when these sense they can no longer be used.

"IoT is literally changing the world around us, whether it’s allowing businesses to achieve unimaginable levels of efficiency or enabling a washing machine to ensure we never run out of detergent. And behind this transformation are companies like Visa and technologies like IBM’s Watson IoT platform," says Harriet Green, general manager, IBM Watson IoT.

"This combination of IBM’s industry leading IoT technologies with Visa payment services, signifies the next defining moment in commerce by allowing payments on any connected object, with new levels of simplicity and convenience for everyone."

In short, here’s how it should work. Visa uses its token sharing architecture, tying a device to IBM’s cloud infrastructure. The Token Service gives information from the payment card a unique digital ID. IBM’s IoT cloud would then handle the tokens and connect them to different devices.

"The Internet of Things is not only driving a more connected world, it’s changing the way we live, shop and pay, by moving data and the point-of-sale to wherever the consumer wants it to be," says Jim McCarthy, executive vice president, innovation and strategic partnerships, Visa.

"With the power of Watson’s cognitive technologies and IBM’s leadership in IoT and security, they are the ideal partner to help us deliver secure payments to ‘virtually anywhere' and on the enormous scale of the IoT."

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