Essentially, the initiative allows FlexPerks Travel Rewards Visa Signature cardholders to swap Plastic Jungle gift card balances for FlexPoints, a program that is among the most used within U.S. Bank services. FlexPoints can be redeemed towards airline tickets, car rentals, charitable donations and other consumer products.

By simply visiting the FlexPerks Visa Promotion Centre online, cardholders can log-in to their account, enter gift card details and have them converted by Plastic Jungle into FlexPoints. The number of points largely depends on the popularity and usability of a given gift card and not a standardized calculation.

Plastic Jungle’s core business is to provide solutions to customers by allowing the transfer or exchange of outdated and unused gift cards into something more suitable and usable. This initiative is a natural progression to integrating Plastic Jungle services with complementary businesses such as Visa.

Dubbed ‘Shoe Paradise,” the game and mobile site was developed by Dynamo, a Quebec-based company specializing in digital media. Alex Nemeroff, Interactive Director at Dynamo, added “This in-store game was created to fulfill two goals, to extend the Shoe Paradise microsite concept to mobile customers and introduce an experience tailored to Aldo’s recently-launched mobile commerce site.”

The game is being promoted through in-store signage, which includes a call-to-action for customers to visit www.aldosp.com on their mobile browser. Details on the game then follow, with a featured shoe from which users can earn rewards as directed by the app. In order to enter to win customers must play three different levels of the game, each one at a different Aldo location, with prizes including free gear.

This initiative further cements Aldo’s mobile presence and is an example of how technology and smart devices can play an important role in uplifting brick-and-mortar shopping experiences.

Contactless/NFC/RFID – MC PayPass/ V PayWave/ AX ExpressPay/ Discover Zip.

According to Neilson, Apple still holds a strong leadership position as the dominant handset brand with the iPhone accounting for 32 percent of all smartphones sold.

Since December of 2011, smartphone usage growth hovers at 3 percent, as 47.8 percent of mobile usage was attributed to smartphones. Although smartphones account for half of all mobile usage, this statistic would suggest that the overall growth rate for smartphone usage is slowing down.

Interestingly enough, Asian Americans rate at the highest level of smartphone usage and as far as gender, women slightly edge out men.

The PayPass Acceptance Network includes both the online component and contactless NFC component, which allows merchants to accept and process payments both in-store through NFC technology or online via the web through various capable smart devices.

Going beyond a simple POS, the PayPass Wallet Services extend to white-label wallet opportunities for banks, merchants and partners while allowing end-consumers to house payment and shipping information for purchases all in one place.

Launching initially in Q3 of 2012, the service will be available in the US, Canada, UK and Australia to start, with further global expansion planned. The system will remain open and allow banks, merchants, partners and end-consumers to use the wallet alongside other credit and debit card services from Discover, American Express, Visa and other branded companies.

Zappos, an e-commerce powerhouse known mostly for their outstanding customer service, has decided to become more active in mobile and launch campaigns targeted to entertain and interact with end-consumers.

In their latest initiative, mobile ads hosted within the US Magazine mobile site, target consumers with a call-to-action to click through to a mobile site and interact on a content-based level tied back to the current Spring 2012 product showcased on the Zappos site. Users are encouraged to pick through a host of topics and create their own Spring 12 story by filling in the gaps with words of their choosing. Users are free to browse products, make purchases or simply share content.

This initiative is both engaging and entertaining, two attributes that are key to building successful mobile campaigns. Whether or not this campaign leads to hard line sales will be the true test for success or failure.

Canada-based mobile payments service provider PayByPhone has just unveiled a new plan to finally launch a parking payment system by mobile phone in Canada. This type of service has long been in place throughout Europe and other parts of the world, though it was only a matter of time before launching in Canada.

PayByPhone allows motorists to pay or extend payment for parking spaces using a mobile application, online, or by calling in to a specific number. Ottawa was a likely target for an early adoption of payment technology, namely incorporating NFC and QR codes into various city payment systems.

NFC technology is integrated into every Pay & Display parking station throughout Ottawa. Through the simple use of a chip embedded sticker, patrons sign-up for the app once then when ready to pay, simply pass their device over the NFC sticker and the application boots up automatically. The system recognizes secure payment information, links to the desired parking space and processes payment. An option to receive a text 5 minutes before time expires can be selected as an option and also allows patrons to extend and pay for additional time if needed.

Users with non-NFC based mobile devices can access this service through a website-enabled QR code, launch the application manually or call a local phone number.

The system aims to deliver mobile payments utilizing NFC contactless technology, but unlike other recent digital wallet and mobile payment solutions all transactions will be handled in “the cloud” over the standard EMV point-of-sale terminals. The goal is to allow users to pay for transactions below the €25 mark without having to enter a PIN number.

A1 currently hosts numerous models of NFC phones including the Sony Xperia S, Blackberry Curve 9360, HTC One X and Blackberry Bold 9900. For those interested in usage outside of mobile devices, contactless stickers will also be tested as an alternative.

As far as functionality goes, the process is quite similar to most digital wallets and contactless payment systems currently on the market, however Paybox NFC does not use Visa’s PayWave or Mastercard’s Paypass solutions. Paybox and A1 offer the service in tandem, and all transactions are handled directly through a designated bank. Users simply sign-up for a Paybox account then direct it to their bank of choice and then download the Paybox app, which is coupled with their current A1 mobile service. No important payment information is stored on neither the NFC enabled chip on the mobile device or on the supplemental NFC stickers.

“Cash is still the most popular means of payment, especially for amounts of up to €25. Searching for small change or waiting to be given money back is time consuming. With Paybox NFC, we can offer our customers a state-of-the-art alternative,” noted Bernd Hartweger, CEO of Paybox Bank.

Interestingly, the study also bills China as the number one smartphone market in the world, surpassing the US and driving the most technological advancement in the mobile payment sphere.

Further statistics show the dramatic growth potential, citing year-end 2011 revenue posted at USD 7.6 Billion with 218 million active users and projecting growth by 2016 to be at USD 84 billion and over 400 million active users. Surprisingly enough, despite China’s dominance in smartphone usage, less than 10 percent of the 900 million mobile device users have adopted smartphones, demonstrating even further growth potential for this market.

This growth may be hindered over the short-term, as Chinese officials and government bodies continue to develop mobile payment regulations, which could delay quicker implementation.

Times have been rather tough for RIM, and it seems they are recognizing the weight of this event. Further, the AppCircus will help developers hone their skills and further innovation with the end goal of bringing more added value to Blackberry apps as a whole.

The contest will focus on three main areas of app development: WebWorks, Adobe Air and Native Gaming. Contestants will have the opportunity to tweak their apps during AppCircus then pitch to a panel of RIM judges who will decide on the top 3 developers for each of the three areas of development. Finalists will be given time to work with RIM advisers to further tweak the app and then participate in a final pitch lasting no more then 3 minutes with a short 2 minute Q&A after the pitch. A winner will be announced shortly after for each development category.

For more info on the contest and how to enroll, please head on over to blackberry10jam.appcircus.com.