Visa Europe plans to launch a new temporary wearable at the Eurovision Song Contest, which allows attendees to purchase goods during the event Stockholm, Sweden.
The wearable will be available for purchase at the Eurovision village and will work with any provider that supports near field communication (NFC); also known as contactless payment. Users will also receive VIP offers on food, drink, and merchandize, alongside fast track into Eurovision areas in Stockholm.
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Temporary wearables have been trialled before at UK’s Download Festival and Glastonbury. The device itself is usually inexpensive or free and allows the customers to pay for items without carrying around cash. The cost factor means it is less likely to be stolen than a normal smartwatch, which is eye candy for thieves at these events.
Venerable Eurovision Song Contest joins the connected world
For most Americans, the Eurovision Song Contest is something they vaguely remembered from a Monty Python skit, or maybe from the year that Austrian drag queen Conchita Wurst’s “Rise Like a Phoenix” took it all. But the event is in its 61st year now, and this year’s event will be the first to be broadcast simultaneously in the United States and China. Eurovision said in a statement that it expects 200 million people might tune in to watch the show; the grand finale on May 14.
“Visa Europe is delighted to be sponsoring this year’s [Eurovision Song] contest as well as enabling those attending in Stockholm to experience the speed and convenience of contactless payments,” said Efraim Preisler, Senior Relationship manager for Israel and Malta at Visa Europe. “Contactless is becoming increasingly prevalent across Europe, providing consumers with the benefits of faster checkout experiences, expanded acceptance as well as curtailing their need to carry cash for low value payments.”
Visa has not mentioned any of its partners at the event, though we suspect most of the retailers that already provide contactless payment will accept the wearable. Visa will then take the wearables offline on October 31.
