Big Three wireless providers unveil Zoompass

As promised earlier this year, Bell, Rogers and Telus have all come together to create ZoomPass, a system where users can make mobile payments visa their phone. An iPhone app has just been released, and an app for the Blackberry Storm was also recently announced. 

While it's great that Canadian companies are working together to provide an extra layer of functionality to their mobile tools, rather than forcing their users to work through incompatible walled gardens on less than useful phone hardware...isn't Zoompass just reinventing the wheel? If Paypal has plans to enter the mobile market beyond the limited app they already offer for the iPhone (and I would be VERY surprised if they don't) won't Zoompass then become irrelevant? And why does creating a set of apps need the combined powers of three Canadian telcos? Isn't this the sort of thing a small company could cobble up with some sweat equity and an API or two? I have no doubt that eventually our phones will replace our wallets, but I have serious doubts that this app will be the one to make that change. 

Maybe instead of duplicating features that already exist or are incoming on mobile devices, Bell, Rogers and Telus should concentrate on giving their customers better value for the money they spend on their phone bill each month. And maybe then we won't have an inferior wireless system to Rwanda.